


Henry and the Token Demon

by ALittleBirdieToldMeASecret



Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-05
Updated: 2019-05-13
Packaged: 2019-10-04 13:15:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 26
Words: 38,754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17305277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ALittleBirdieToldMeASecret/pseuds/ALittleBirdieToldMeASecret
Summary: An AU of Bendy and the Ink Machine where everything and everyone in the studio is controlled by Joey Drew, except for Henry, who has the ability to severe the connection between the puppets and the puppeteer.





	1. The Devil is Behind Me

His heart pounded in his throat as he hid behind one of the many columns in the maze like room.The windows in them concealing featureless ink mannequins.They watched him, silently, as he listened very intently for any sign of where the beast would come from next.It was hard to hear over the sound of his own heavy breathing.He peered around, before cautiously stepping towards the device laying a few feet away from him. A golden gadget, rather like a rectangular mirror, that had been given to him to search for hidden messages painted with an otherwise invisible ink. The tremendous monster chasing him had knocked it away in its previous mad dash to catch the man.  As he crept forward, he heard a calamitous galloping headed towards him. 

 _Left_. It was coming from his left.

With barely seconds to spare, he grabbed the device and dove out of the way of the beast.Its disproportionately large hands carrying its useless legs behind it.He watched it sail past him, it’s eyeless, distorted head bearing rows of glistening, sharp teeth, appearing where he had been only seconds ago.It disappeared quickly into the wall at the end of that row. 

_Jesus Christ_.That abomination could not be further from the happy, dancing devil darling he had sketched up over 30 years ago...

The man scrambled to his feet and quickly began attempting to turn the decoder on.He fumbled with it for a moment, his hands still shaking from that last close call.He cursed Joey under his breath for the thousandth time.Why would you do this?Why? A question he’d asked himself almost as often.

He felt relief relax some of the tension in his jaw as a familiar golden display lit up, reassuring him that the decoder was still functioning. With a quiet sigh, he began scanning the room for any sign of writing that could potentially help him figure out what to do now.Or how to stop that thing.A familiar thumping caught his attention before he watched the large creature rush down a different row, a few rows away from where he stood.

That thing must be blind.

He began making his way through the brilliantly lit room, lights in the vaulted ceilings and “display cases” casting an eerie yellow glow on the inky reminders of the mutilated creatures inhabiting the levels above them.

Staying close to the columns, he checked as much as he could with his device. 

Nothing.

The beast had completely missed him three times now, as he focused more and more on making sure he checked every side of every column and every wall in the room.

_There has to be something, anything!_

He made his way towards the corridor on the far side of the room. 

Hope flickered in his mind as he saw a golden glow through his decoder, a sure sign of a message.He hurried closer, finding an arrow, pointing down a hallway, detached from the rest of the room.Distracted, he did not realize the sound of the beast emerging for a rush was right behind him, as it came barreling down towards the corridor.He realized too late, and lunging towards the closest wall was not enough.One of the claws on its malformed hands cut across the back of his shoulders.He tried to muffle himself as he cried out.Regardless of if the beast had heard him or not, it never even hesitated as it continued on to the end of the hall, where it, again, vanished as it collided with the wall.

Pain seared into his back as he stumbled backwards a bit, gasping from the pain.It felt hot to the touch, and _god damn it_ , did it hurt, but it missed his spine, so he should count himself lucky.He was too old for this kind of physical trauma. He pressed his free hand against his temples and took a few deep breaths before attempting to stand up straight(-ish) again. He inhaled sharply, and stopped again when he heard it.

 _It’s rushing again._ Only this time, like before, it was further away.

Nerves shot to hell and back, he started moving again.He slowly pulled the decoder back up, as he closed the gap between himself and the end of the hall.His visioned blurred a little, as his body caught up with itself and shock set in.He put his weight against the wall to steady himself, as he waited for his sight to focus back on the next hidden symbol.There was only one way left to go, to the right, but he was still grateful for the arrow pointing towards a doorway at the end of the next hallway. That’s when he saw something exciting.There, at the end of the hall, he could see the glow of something more inscribed on the floor in front of the doors.Staying close to the wall, he made his way towards it, hoping it would help him put an end to all of this. Or at least to that thing.

The pain in his back made his movement slower, he felt nauseous, and he was trying desperately to think of something to stop the bleeding with, but his overall focus remained on the message. 

As he drew almost close enough to read it, he could hear the monster making its way back towards him.He stepped back, but kept the decoder aimed at the text.As the hideous beast mindlessly burst through the door way, his heart sank as he read the message on the ground.

Save him.

_Save him?_

_Save who?_

Was the message referring to himself? To Joey? He didn’t have the time to dwell on it, the beast was looking for him in the room they had initially started in, and that seemed to be the only way out.

Fear grasped him as he attempted to convince himself to follow the monster, and he paused.

_What if I die here?_

The man closed his eyes, the aches and pains in his back, his limbs, his head; all overwhelmed him.He was so tired.The thought of death played at him constantly, waning, like a tide. Thinking back to his home, to his family- to Linda- he took a deep breath and opened his eyes.

_Joey, if I get out of here, I’m going to kill you._

He cautiously entered the room, the beast nowhere in sight.He walked as quietly as he could towards the make shift throne, glaring at the broken cassette player he’d tried when he’d first entered the lair.The recording machine was labeled ‘Joey’, and he couldn’t help but think its silence was some kind of sick joke.But there, sitting beside it, was something new.A film reel labeled ‘The End’.Except he wasn’t the only one who’d noticed something.

Before he could reach the throne, the terrifying creature burst out from one of the walls.Frozen by shock, the man stared as the beast turned to face him.

_It’s now or never._

He bolted towards the film, the beast hesitating a heartbeat before pursuing him.

_No._

He reached the throne, clambering over the useless mementos.

_No, no, no._

He grabbed the reel.

_“Save him.”_

The words rang out in his mind.

_NO._

The monster was at his heals as he put the reel under his arm and ran.

_The projector was right there!What the hell am I doing?!_

He turned on a dime and the beast crashed directly into the wall in front of them, but this room was much smaller than the previous one, and he had much less time to think.

Sammy. Norman. Susie.

Allison. Tom.

They had all been corrupted by the ink.Could that thing... be one of them?

When the creature reappeared, he only had a brief moment to collect himself.He thought he might throw up for a second.He knew it was insane.Regardless, this thing had been trying to kill him this whole time.So why...

He couldn’t debate with himself any longer as the beast closed in on him.He turned sharply to face the monster, crouching slightly, and threw the reel aside.Before the thing could crush him, he leapt forward, barely missing its claws, and melded into the inky monster.


	2. Reanimation

Everything was dark.It was quiet.But it was deafeningly loud at the same time.A world of ink, as far as he could see.He felt the urge to scream, but buried it as he pushed on. With every step, he felt more unwelcome.His feet sticking and sinking, a choking sensation teasing at his throat.

_I hope I’m not dead, because this sure feels like some kind of hell._

It was getting even more difficult to move, like the ink had hands that were grabbing him, pulling him back... but he pushed on.The darkness stretched out in front of him, and he wouldn’t dare to try and turn around. 

_Wait..._

He squinted, making out something, maybe someone, in the distance.He opened his mouth to call out, but was immediately repressed by the ink.He gasped as it pulled him down and began engulfing him. 

“Wait! WAIT!” He cried out, desperately.He was able to break free for a moment, taking the opportunity to run. The slightest sign of movement caught his eye-they moved!It was a person!And they had heard him!!The ink tried to stop him, but it could only slow him down.The pain in his back nearly vanished as he put his entire focus on them.He couldn’t make out who they were, but he didn’t care.He was right, and according to the golden ink, he could save them.

An amalgamation of voices whispered through the ink, one only just more distinguishable from the rest.

“Hhhh....”

His heart pounded in his throat as he defied the world around him, frustration fueling his fight.He would save them.

As the stranger began to move, the ink swelled over them.It consumed them in an instant.

“No! STOP!” He called out.

He tried to go faster, get closer, but the ink beneath him became softer. It was strangling him.It felt like the world was melting, like he was losing.

“Please!Come back!”He called, almost hopelessly, “I want to help you!”He was only a few yards from them now.

_I have to save you!_

A hulking mass of ink remained where the person had been.It was... _destabilizing?_ Flecks of white, the only sign of life in the undulating mess.It started to create a form, almost.

The beast?

_No..._

The Ink Demon...?

He was so close, he was trying with all the strength left in him to reach out to them.

“Please...!” the man pleaded.

Everything was falling apart.The quiet was gone now, replaced by screaming, a million voices, but one, again, more distinct than the others.

“Help me, please... HENRY!”

The ink holding him was becoming weaker, but there was still so much.He couldn’t breathe, it had almost swallowed him as the unstable mass reached out.

His lungs and eyes burned, his legs were going numb.Determination the last thing in his mind as the ink threatened to choke him out of existence, until finally, they reached each other. It wasn’t quite a hand, but he grabbed it with all his might. 

The screaming was all he could hear now, it was too loud to even think, piercing his ears with a fury.

Bubbling and writhing, the ink tried desperately to hold its grasp on the two, but it was failing.The ink’s grip loosened, the black world beginning to reveal cracks of reality around them. 

The man, Henry, pulled his head away from the slimy clutches of the ink, gasping for air as he wrestled his other arm free.  It was receding, but still practically covered the other entirely.Ignoring the screaming pain in his shoulders, with little strain, the man pulled the other’s arm forward.Stained, like Sammy had been, but an arm nonetheless.The ink was barely holding on now, melting all around them, slowly revealing the room they had been in before.

The film room was covered in a thick coat of the tarry substance,but the life had drained from it.Almost all of his strength was gone as Henry collapsed onto his knees.The other, still stuck in a large clump of the stuff, dropping with him.His hand still tightly clasped onto the other’s, he heard something quiet, that sounded almost like... _crying?_

He reached his free hand out and began attempting to find the other in the mound of inky residue.It gave way easily until he felt firmer ink.His heart was pounding in his ears. _What if I was wrong?_ He didn’t realize his hand was shaking as he attempted to remove the rest of the excess, but stopped, as a... face? Looked up at him.Confusion washed over him; this was no human.

“What...?!”

Panic set in, and he hastily pulled both hands away, falling backwards slightly into the pool of ink around them.The creature watched him, almost as equally confused by the man’s actions; it more closely resembled the Ink Demon, but had an uncharacteristic frown, and a singular, toon-ish eye uncovered on the right side of its face.

After a moment, the man felt the tension in his jaw ease slightly, since the monster was making no attempt to attack him.But he could still feel his heart beating hard in his chest.Shifting his legs back under himself, he sat a few feet away from the thing now, defenses up on the good likelihood it could still reform and attack.Shooting a quick glance to the wall on the other side of the room, the man checked to see if the mysterious ‘End’ reel was still there.Covered in ink, albeit, but still there indeed.

They watched each other for a few minutes, trying to figure the other out, when the demon suddenly (unexpectedly) made a weak attempt at a smile.The man’s body tensed back up as the ink creature weakly tried to get some semblance of composure about itself.Which didn’t go very well.It only really seemed to be able to materialize a head and, well, part of an arm.

Henry swallowed and cleared his throat, “So, uh...can you..can you speak?”The question sounded a bit ridiculous once he’d heard it out loud, but the demon seemed almost starstruck that he had addressed it at all.

It hesitated, looking down in consideration.Looking back up, a sharp hissing, gurgling type of noise came from the creature, while ink dribbled from the outline and teeth of the struggling mouth.Sympathy playing at the back of his mind as the sounds devolved into some form of coughing.

“Hey, hey...” Henry leaned forward, instinctively raising his hand to calm the thing, “You don’t have to choke yourself, it’s okay.”

As it looked pathetically back at the old man, gears began turning in his head.Just because he doesn’t look humanoid doesn’t mean there isn’t someone under all of...that.Norman had ended up with a god damned projector for a head.

Taking a deep, careful breath, he slowly began moving closer towards the being, arm extended, keeping his eyes locked on the other’s.His brows furrowed so tightly, his headache actually got a little worse, but he could see something in its eye, something familiar...

Finally closing the gap, he rested his hand on the side of the creature’s face, it relaxing into his grip.

“I want to help you.”

The demon tried again to shift into more of a proper shape, stumbling, but able to at least rest his hand on the human’s.

Henry pushed himself closer and tried to help it-or him, rather- sit up. 

“There you go.”

The ink being beamed at his newfound friend, but in only a brief moment, his body shuddered, and what little was stable partially collapsed back into the pool of ink they were sitting in.

“You can’t get up, can you?” He replaced his previous question with a new one. The demon’s smile faded as he looked down at what remained of his body.

They sat in silence for a few minutes.  All sorts of scenarios weaving through his thoughts, Henry found it hard to come up with a way to help the unstable being.  For as much time he'd spent wandering the convoluted studio, he still had very little knowledge of the actual events that lead to the conclusion he was greeted by upon his imprisonment here.  Of course, there was _something_... Henry began glancing around the room, his eyes falling on the throne, of sorts.

“I think... I might have an idea.”He stood up slowly, making sure the ink creature could at least keep his head stable on his own.The demon watched, quietly, from the one eye he had, as the man walked towards the shrine-like throne.Looking over it, pacing once or twice, he reached down and started shifting some of the relics around.

_I really have lost my mind._

His mind, however, knew perfectly where it had gone. 

Back to the first floor, the animation studio.If those... tokens, he supposed, could fix the machine, then maybe, they could help repair the demon, too. 


	3. Left Behind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated! Fixed the italics

  His hands found a Manila folder, buried deeply enough to be somewhat spared from the ink drenched fate of the rest of the room, with terribly faded sheet music inside.A pang of sadness pricked at Henry as he thought back to the fate of the possessed music composer, Sammy Lawrence.

Tucking it under his arm, he continued scavenging.He flinched when a small landslide revealed a set of unblinking eyes he knew very well.Pushing something else aside, he picked out the broken head of one of the many Bendy cut-outs littering this animation studio hell.

After glancing back to the living look alike, watching him with childlike curiosity, he moved to another spot of the throne.His mind was cluttered with questions and doubts.He had absolutely _no_  idea what he was doing.More importantly, he had no idea _why_ he was doing it.Pretty much none of his other attempts to fix anything had worked, but on the same note, _what else would he do_?He still had no plan, or knowledge even, of how to escape this place, so why _not_?

Clearing the indistinguishable items off the top again, he rooted around for something else, something with more... _heart_.His hand felt something that, at one time, might have been soft to the touch.Digging out a “heavenly” toy Bendy, he peered back to the living lookalike, whose eye widened at the discovery.Smiling softly, he stood up, and walked back towards the pool of ink.

It felt strange to move so freely around the inky demon, but at the same time, it felt almost ... _nice_.Like he’d felt around his previous mute companion, Boris.A flicker of sadness from the loss crossed his mind, but it was gone again in an instant.He still didn’t feel completely comfortable, either. 

He found a spot near the being, where he placed the small collection of memorabilia.

“Maybe a few more things, whad’ya think?”The ink being smiled up at him in response, which he took as a yes.

Returning to the slightly dismantled pile, he noticed something awkward sticking out, closer to the top.He steadied one hand on the chair at the top before wiggling it free, pulling a few other things out with it that fell towards his feet.Poorly wiping it off with his already ink drenched forearm, he realized it was another film reel, only it seemed to be lacking any actual film. 

Looking beneath it, he noticed one of the things that had fallen was an small, old paper envelope.It was misshapen, like there was something besides paper in it.After retrieving both items, he headed back to the collection.Rather carelessly, he dropped the reel so he could use both hands to open the letter, revealing a small collection of character pins for Bendy, Boris, and Alice. 

“Huh, never seen these before...” he spoke mostly to himself as he replaced the buttons and rested the envelope by the folder. 

He decided alone that one more item would be enough as he set his sights back to the throne.It had to be right, or he knew for certain this wouldn’t work.

After sorting through a handful of things, making sure not to destabilize the messy throne, Henry noticed something surprising.He could see his own very signature.Delicately maneuvering what came to be a large poster out of the pile, disappointment settled in as he realized it was almost completely drenched in ink, his signature being just about the only thing visible.

Henry sighed, wistfully thinking back to the job he’d had all those years ago.Things sure had changed.He walked back towards the demon, who’d begun looking over his other findings.

“I don’t know any symbols or anything... I don’t exactly know what to do with these, either.And I don’t have any goats to sacrifice-“ that made the ink being smile, _at least he has a sense of humor,_ “-so I’m gunna need your help on this one.”

The older man crouched down and placed the poster amongst the other offerings.

“Can we work with this?”

The being looked over everything as the tokens continued drifting apart slowly in the ink, before returning his gaze to the human before him.He seemed almost as lost as Henry felt, as he made what seemed to be a shrugging gesture.

“Got any better suggestions?”The ink demon held his gaze with an almost sarcastic expression.“Alright, alright.Well, let’s at least make it look legitimate.”The man straightened up, taking the empty reel and the plush toy with him.With a little help from the demon, they moved each token into a ring surrounding the creature.

After placing the last item, Henry straightened up, wincing from the pain in his back again.He reached over his shoulder to see if the wound was still bleeding, and felt relieved as he brought his hand back to see thicker, dark blood on his finger tips, assuring him the blood had started congealing over the gash. The pain was still deep, but it felt more like an ache than the fierce burning from before. 

Looking back to his companion, the ink demon was watching him intently.Pointing questioningly to Henry’s hand, the old man shook his head, “It’s okay, just a cut.”

The toon-like face remained tense with concern.Henry walked back towards him, careful not to disturb the items. “See?” He extended his hand as he crouched back down.“This means it’s healing.”An exaggeration, but the demon reached for his hand, looking it over, and smiled back up towards him.The man returned the smile, but the peace only lasted for a moment.The ink began bubbling, dripping upwards towards the ceiling.The walls, oozing the substance, reminded Henry sharply of the same warning that bid the appearance of the Ink Demon prior to his seemingly brief reform.

“Shit.”

The ink threw Henry back, denying him the chance to get away.Dizzying pain blinded him for a second before he pushed himself up.Horrified was the only word that could describe the expression of the ink being before he was blocked from Henry’s view by a swirling tide of ink.He pulled himself a couple of feet closer to the wall, bracing himself as the ink wall surrounding the creature expanded towards him.

Decimating the throne, and sucking the ‘End’ reel into its cyclone, the ink was practically pulling the machine inside out.The metal room creaked and moaned under the pressure, the ink was almost to Henry’s feet when he pulled them closer.He watched in silent terror, breathing heavily and pressing himself against the wall of the room in an effort to avoid being consumed by the ink as well. 

As the room around him disappeared from view, the ink threatening to take him regardless, when suddenly — everything stopped.Frozen completely. 

After a minute or two, Henry warily used the ink coated wall to stand, wincing as he pulled the damaged area of his back away from the sticky substance. _Great, now that’s gunna get an infection._

Before he had any time to evaluate the situation, the ink started circulating in reverse, more slowly this time.The ink on the walls faded, and the pillar of ink receded back towards the place where the ink demon had been.Holding his breath, he fixed his eyes to the spot, uncertain of what would be there now, and how friendly it would be with him.

Memories played in his head like the cartoons that plastered the interior of this very room when he’d first entered; the gruesome beast that had chased him through the interior of the ink machine, the Ink Demon tearing the head off of the projector monster that claimed the body of the old projectionist, Norman Polk, the sound of the same Demon brutalizing his “loyal prophet”, Sammy Lawrence.Henry felt very cold, the thought of undoing everything he’d just done, the only one in his mind. 

The ink crashed to the ground, revealing a human-like mass on the floor, buried in what remained.Like before, the first distinguishable sign of life was a hand.A cartoonishly large, white gloved hand, just barely visible in the pool.It reached out, unable to pull itself from underneath the ink. 

Maybe it was foolish hope, maybe it was the familiarity he’d felt before, but something pushed Henry to step away from the wall and try to help him again. 

Maybe... it worked.

Trepidation made him slow, but as he made his way close enough, he knelt down and took the hand in his.He pulled it forward, leaning in to find the head of the other as his form became clearer.He was maintaining the shape of a body, but much more childlike than the original Ink Demon.A round, horned head, like before.Henry brushed most of the excess ink away from his face, revealing two eyes, and the signature toothy mouth. 

_It’s... Bendy._ Almost.He was off model, with what seemed to be a crack running down the right side of his face, running through an off model eye as well.A golden pupil looked steadily at him.

“H-Henry?”

The man stared in shock, gaping at the living toon.He was slightly larger than Bendy, too, more humanoid in proportion.He reflected the look of suspended disbelief back at the old man.

“You..you can talk.”Obviously.But Henry was still trying to cope with the fact that his half baked idea had, for all intents and purposes, _worked._

The shock on the ink being’s face gave way to an overwhelmed joy, inky tears filling his eyes. “Henry!” He lunged forward, knocking Henry back with an embrace, “You came back...!”His voice muffled as he buried his face against the old animator,“It’s you...it’s really you.”

Overwhelmed in his own way, Henry’s mind raced to piece together everything that was happening. _He knows me.That’s must mean he remembers who he was!Right..?Joey.Did he...?_ His train of though was derailed when he felt an odd sensation from the ink creature.He was melting.

“Hey, hey, calm down!”Panicked, he cradled the being, “You’re gunna undo everything we just did!”

Holding him closer, the demon melted into Henry’s lap.He had changed slightly, he was smaller now...maybe even, somehow, more on model.The man attempted to soothe the demon, hushing him softly while attempting to hold him together. 

“It’s okay.I’m here, I’m here.”If he was right about this ink creature, they had the soul from one of the many employees that Joey had experimented on all those years ago.The studio had aged terribly, but it was impossible to tell how quickly all of this had happened.How long had he been trapped in that monstrous form?How long had he been forced to do the lethal bidding of the ink?How long has he been alone?

The knot in his chest told him he knew things had been like this nearly the entire time since he’d left, and he didn’t know if it’d be more cruel to wish for a slow decline into madness, or an introduction into this life already submitted to it. He also knew it didn’t matter now, he would do everything in his power to get all of sane souls as far away from this life as he could. 

After about 20 minutes of this, the demon grew quiet.He had since stopped melting, and Henry leaned back slightly, making sure he’d fallen asleep.He breathed a heavy sigh, exhaustion creeping up on him.Careful not to disturb the toon, Henry scooped up the being and shifted to his side.Laying in the pool of ink, with his newest companion sound asleep, the older man closed his eyes.His mind drifted to the two ink beings who had been waiting for him outside since this all started, Allison and Tom.

_I hope they’re still out there..._

 

They were.


	4. Unsteady

“It’s been a while.” The ink stained woman finally spoke out loud, “Do you think... he’s dead?”

The Boris look alike uncrossed his arms to rest the mechanical one on her shoulder.She broke her gaze from the machine and looked him in the eyes.A mixture of fear and hope was apparent on her face, until she closed her eyes and sighed, shoulders dropping slightly.

“Just...” she hesitated before returning her eyes to vague shadow of the machine across the river of ink, “a few more minutes.”

 

—————

 

It had been maybe an hour.There wasn’t any real gauge of how much time passed in the studios.Henry hadn’t realized he’d fallen asleep, too, until he was opening his eyes.His head was pounding, and he felt nauseous.The demon remained exactly as he was when the man had nodded off, only he had returned to the more off model form.It was so....quiet.Not the tense, eerie quiet he was used to, but a calm one.The gentle sound of the childlike toon breathing lulled the man back towards sleep, but he brought his hands to his eyes and yawned.Allison and Tom might still be out there, waiting. _They might even think I’m dead._ He took one last moment to appreciate the peace before he moved his hand to the demon’s shoulder, shaking it gently.

“Bendy?”

Henry moved his hand to brush it against the cartoonish face.

“Bendy, wake up.” He spoke gently, remembering similar situations playing out with his own children when they were younger.He would give anything to see them again.

The creature’s eyes began to open.He looked up at the human, a faint smile greeting him.Smiling in return, Bendy placed his hand on the mans face, almost as if to make sure he was real. 

“Henry.” His smile widened.

“Is that all you can say?” The man teased.

Bendy stretched his arms above his head and yawned, before sitting up beside the man.

  “Thank you.”

Henry followed, sitting up and stretching his arms as well.He practically looked like a searcher with how much ink was on him.

“Don’t thank me yet,” he replied, getting his feet under him, “I still don’t know how we’re getting out of here.” He pushed himself up and started looking around again. 

Bendy staggered, slightly, trying to stand as well.Henry caught him, standing firm to let the demon lean on him.

“First things first, I’ve got some friends waiting for me, so I think it’s time to introduce you.” Henry looked down at the being, who returned his look with concern. “It’s okay, they helped me get this far.”

“I-I-“ Bendy stuttered, looking rather sheepish, “I think... I know...” he cut himself off, clutching his head in pain, and gasped. His ink began running again.

“Whoa, hey, it’s okay.It’s okay now.Things are.. different.”He attempted to comfort the demon, who didn’t quite seem convinced.

“Here,” Henry knelt down in front of him, “I’ll help.” He patted the top of his shoulder, motioning for the being to get on.

Bendy slowly climbed onto Henry’s back, like a child, carefully minding the gash that he knew he had left, in spite of not really remembering it.

“Just, stay calm, okay?” Bendy nodded in response as Henry stood up straight, grunting with the effort.It was a little strange, but he seemed to heal more quickly here than in the real world, his age barely even a factor anymore.

He headed to the doorway from which he’d entered, pausing to take a breath as he pushed the door open.

“Ready?” He smiled back at the toon, who nodded in response.Together, they headed down into the river of ink separating the machine from the rest of the studio.

Tension crept up on the man, unsure of how his allies would respond to their newest addition.

_Anything could happen here, they know that, right?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very short chapter, mostly just a bridge from chapter 3 to 5 because I thought it made chapter 3 way too long. Updated! Now with italics


	5. Betrayal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update! Finally fixed the italics! Feel free to check out some of my sketches of the AU on my tumblr https://betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com/tagged/token!au

It had been hours, but by now Allison was sitting where she stood before, eyes still fixed in the direction Henry had gone as he waded through the tumultuous ink river separating them from the ink machine.It was only just dark enough to enshroud the thing itself, but close enough that they had heard several calamitous noises erupt from it.

Tom had been pacing for about an hour, checking on his friend from time to time, but all he got was “I’m sure it’s okay.” “He’ll come back.” “I’m okay, he’ll find a way out for all of us.”Tom was void of the hope she had, which was probably okay, since she had enough for the both of them.Despite not having known Henry for very long, Allison had a questionable amount of faith in the old man.Tom was not so easily persuaded.He had started making his way over to check on her again when he heard something.Allison noticed, too, and was back on her feet before he’d made it the rest of the way.

“Is it...?” She hesitated, contemplating calling out for the man, but decided against it.They didn’t need to draw any unwanted attention to the already risky mission.Tom rested his good arm on her shoulder, and she returned the favor with a smile before turning her gaze back to the machine.

  A minute or two felt like an hour, until they eventually heard something in the ink.Sure enough, the silhouette of the gruff, older looking man came into view.

“Henry!” Allison kept her voice down, but couldn’t contain her excitement.Tom, on the other hand, noticed something _off_.He used both of his arms to pull her back. 

“Tom-?!”

Deciphering what he was seeing, a horrible realization came to him.Henry had _lost_. The Ink Demon was bringing the old man’s corpse back to them. _To taunt them?Threaten them?Or had Henry betrayed them? Was he leading the monster back to them?_ It didn’t matter, he was going to protect her from whatever was headed their way.He drew a hatchet from his belt as he stood, guarded, in front of Allison.

“Tom, _wait!_ ” She grasped the arm brandishing the weapon, but he kept his eyes fixated on the monster approaching them.That wasn’t her Henry, not anymore.

  He would protect her.

 

————

 

Henry realized he had overestimated the strength he had left as he made it to the other side of the river.Placing both hands on the dock, he struggled to pull both of them up. He felt Bendy’s grip tighten when he finally managed to get them both on stable land, but the demon slid off to check if the older man was okay.He couldn’t stand yet, so he turned and rested on his hip, placing his free hand on the demon’s shoulder.

“I’m okay, just a little winded.” He reassured the concerned creature.

He sat up more and looked for the aforementioned friends he’d told Bendy about.Panic struck him as he saw Tom standing a stones throw from them, brandishing a hatchet.

“Tom, wait-please, I need you to listen to me.” He begged, trying to push himself to his feet, his back making it impossible to stand all the way up.He was only met with a silent glare. No, Tom wasn’t even looking at him.He was completely focused on the fragile ink demon.

“Tom, please-“ Henry was cut off abruptly as Tom rushed towards them, aiming straight for Bendy.

Allison had been standing behind him, but she, too, seemed horrified by the being, and was making no attempt to stop her companion.

Alarmed, the human mustered up what little strength he had left and pushed them both out of Tom’s path.

“TOM-!”

Henry couldn’t get through to him, and he was not nearly as exhausted as the old man – he turned quickly to launch another attack.Bendy was melting bullets as Tom lifted the hatchet above his head, throwing the weapon perfectly aimed at demon.With no time to stop it, Henry watched in horror as the hatch wretched into head of the small ink being.Henry convulsed as the sickening gush of ink splashed across his face. Tom stood still, breathing heavily, satisfied with the result of his assault.

The rest of the room faded from Henry’s mind, and all thoughts or notions drained from him.Practically on autopilot, he grabbed what was left of the demon’s limp arm, reaching his other hand towards the handle of the weapon, but before he could grab it, a thousand tendrils of ink cascaded out of the wound and pulled the hatchet into the head of the creature, disappearing in a matter of seconds, only to be replaced with the familiar off model face. 

All three people stared in shock as the worried expression returned to the demons un-damaged face as he scrambled to get closer to Henry.Still struggling to respond in real-time, Henry wrapped his arm around Bendy and looked back at Tom, fear of another attempt at violence the only thing that came through.Tom, however, remained still, dread petrifying him.His first movement was a step back, a slight stumble, but a quick glance back to Allison reminded him of his fury.Weaponless, he turned back to the man and his demon, clenching his fists. 

Coming somewhat back to his senses, Henry desperately put his arm out, “Tom, please! _You have to listen to me!_ ”

But Allison had beaten him to it. She ran to the wolf man, grabbing his shoulder, “Tom, you can’t win.Not against him.”

At first, he threatened to defy her, taking a step towards them, but her grip remained strong.

  “I... I don’t know what you’ve done, Henry,” she looked to him now, dismay shaking her voice, “but it was a _mistake._ ”

After an uncomfortable amount of silence, the two began backing toward the way they had come, keeping watchful eyes on the two until they were out of sight.

 

As soon as Henry was certain they were gone, he turned back to the cowering creature in his arms.

“Are you-are you really okay?” He asked, putting his hand on the demons face, as if he still believed it might split back open.

“H-Henry... I-“ he whispered, his wide eyes full of inky tears, “I _hurt_ them.” Ink streamed down his face as he pulled away from Henry, “I hurt _you_.” He started curling in on himself, shaking, and now melting at an alarming rate.He clutched his head, like he was in pain again.

“Bendy, hey...come on-” The human shifted closer, attempting to rest his hand on the general area the toon’s shoulder should be, “-that wasn’t really you.”

The demon gave no notice he had heard the man, but Henry noticed something...changing.Despite melting enough for it to pool around them, it almost seemed like he was _growing_.Vague shapes of spines were forming along his back, and his sobs were reminiscent of the echoing chorus of voices in that... _ink realm?_ Or whatever it was.

  “Bendy..! Bendy, hey.” Henry kept his voice hushed, but worry strained it now.“Please listen to me.”He moved his hands to cup the claws quickly replacing the demon’s fingers, “That. Was _not_. You.” He tightened his grip a little more as he ignored his better judgement and moved closer. “I can see you now-I can hear you. You will never be alone like that again.” His grip softened, “I’m here.”

  The demon’s claws clenched tighter.

“You’ll leave again... _YOU’LL LEAVE AGAIN!_ ” His voice distorted as he screamed into his hands.

Feeling guilt twist inside of him, Henry pulled himself closer, closing any remaining distance between the two, and rested his head against the back of the demon’s hands.

“No.Not ever again.”


	6. Reconciliation

It was a while before the ink demon had returned to some semblance of normal, his arms now wrapped around his human companion.Every once in a while, Henry would say something to soothe the being, but the whole ordeal had left him almost as shaken.

Would he be able to find a way out for all four of them?Would Allison and Tom even believe him if he did?Was it possible that Bendy could just revert back into that deformed monster at any moment?Would he still recognize Henry if he did?Is he unstoppable?

_Stop thinking like that, I don’t need to protect myself from him, I need to protect him from whatever is controlling this place._

“Bendy?” The human shifted back slightly, so he could look the toon in the eyes.Stains from his inky tears were still visible on his face, but he was stable.“It hurts you, to think about the past, doesn’t it?” Henry asked calmly.The frown on his friend’s face deepened as he nodded.

  He removed his hand from the demon’s back and rested it on his shoulder. “You don’t have to think about it.As far as I’m concerned,” he pointed in the direction of the machine that was now too far off to see, “You were created a couple of hours ago, right there.Okay?” He looked back down at the creature, who shared a slight smile as he nodded.

  “Henry?”

  “Mhm?”

  “Thank you.”

  The human smiled in response.That strange familiarity swelled in his chest again, almost like he was looking at his own child in his arms.He knew he could trust the demon, but the thought that he might not be able to _truly_ save him haunted the animator.

Attempting to shake those doubts, he started looking around.He rolled into his back carefully, minding the wound, and sat up, wincing.He ached all over, with sleep finding a much higher spot in his priorities. _And a stiff drink wouldn’t hurt._ He sighed heavily, getting a better look at the room.It’d been long enough that they could leave the same way Tom and Allison had, without risking running into them. _As if we have a choice._

Bendy pushed himself up as well, following the eyes of the man beside him.“Where do we go now?”

  “I guess...” the old man rubbed the back of his neck as he hesitated to answer. “I guess we head back up.”

  The two looked at each other, both clearly reluctant to move from this somewhat bearable spot.

  “Are you okay to walk?” Henry asked, looking over the ink demon.He wasn’t really melting anymore, save for the few usual drips around his face and body.

  The being rocked forward and used his hands to push himself upwards, smiling at his victory as he remained steady on his feet.Henry smiled back at him for a moment before he rolled back down onto his side. “Good, I‘m not.How about you carry me now?”

At first, Bendy just stared at him.Then, a devious smile broke across his face. “Oh?” He stepped closer, striking a contemplative stance, “Well then, let’s see-“he began mimicking strain as he made no real effort to pick up, pull, or push the man. Henry snickered as the demon straightened back up, sighing with a shrug, “Looks like you’re stuck down here, pal.I guess I’ll have to try and find a fork lift up there!”

  “ _Wow._ ” The man scoffed, feigning insult as he sat back up, “It’s all muscle, you know.”

Bendy laughed, a raspy quality in his voice, but almost childlike nonetheless.The amusement on the demon’s face reminded Henry of his own children, again, his mind wandering back to his family as he stood up.

Bendy smiled gleefully at the man, and for the first time since he’d ended up in that hell hole, a jolt of understanding hit him.

_He’s real.That’s really him._

The Dancing Demon Darling in the flesh (so to speak).The same love and excitement he’d first felt after conceptualizing the character reentered his mind.What Joey had done was beyond wrong.He still felt very strongly about everything that had happened in the 30 years since he’d left. But just for an second, he understood what pushed the man to even think of such a thing.

_There’s someone in there._

The tenderness quickly dissipated from the reminder that there was a person, tortured for _30 years_ , under that cutesy, toonish face.

“Henry?” Bendy’s smile faded into worry over the tired look in Henry’s eyes.He kind of always looked like that, but there was something else there...

He smiled warmly back at the creation, “Sorry, just thinking...” trying to shift the mood with the tune of his voice, “upstairs it is.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aren’t my chapter names so elaborate and beautifully written?


	7. Relaxation

The air was stale.The floorboards were louder than the pipes, occasionally groaning under the pressure of the ink flowing through them.The age of the building showed, the strain of the horrors that had happened there taking their toll.Nothing had changed in the administration level of the studios the old animator wandered through, now with his companion, but he felt somehow more uneasy.

Something’s...wrong.

The smallish ink demon stayed close to the man, but seemed less on edge.He peered curiously into the tight rooms with cracked doors, filing cabinets and desks about the only thing to find.

There had to be some way to access the levels above them, but Henry had literally stumbled upon this place after falling through the the floor of the level above them.Allison had said that they followed him by using a rope, right?So perhaps a rope would be of assistance.

The older man glanced back at the toon, who had already been watching the back of his head.They stopped.Bendy offered a smile; _is he really just that calm right now?_

“You doin’ okay?” Henry asked, as they began walking again.The demon hurried up a little so he could walk beside the human, which he was grateful for considering his neck was still aching.

“Yep!” He chimed, quickly getting distracted by another room.“Uh, Henry?”

The man looked back at his companion, who met his gaze with a question, “Is there somethin’ we’re lookin’ for?”Henry paused again, looking around.

“I was mostly just retracing my steps... But I think we should keep an eye out for rope, or ink clusters we could use with one of those, uh, configuring machines.”

Bendy looked at the man, giving no notion that he knew what the animator was talking about.

“If we find any, I’ll show you what I mean.”He smiled at the toon, who nodded.

“Rope and clusters; gotcha!”The ink being saluted before tearing off down the hall.

“Bendy, wait!! I didn’t mean-“ but the toon was already out of sight.

Henry sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers.This was definitely reminiscent of early fatherhood.He continued on towards the end of the hall, making a right to follow the path the demon had taken.

Doubtful that he’d be able to catch up, he decided to begin searching some of the offices Bendy might have missed.The smell of paper and ink was mixed with the smell of the rotting wood that had already dulled his senses, but the dust was thicker here than most other places in the studio, causing a sneeze every now and then.

Rummaging through yet another stack of filing cabinets, Henry had only managed to find rusty staplers and ink stained IRS papers.The desks lacked even the documentation, the tedious exploration reminding the man of how tired he was, his nerves about the only thing keeping him awake.He sighed slowly as he stood up to find another office to check.

_Where’s the Butcher Gang?This is too quiet._

“Bendy?” His voice reverberating down the hallway.He tensed when he didn’t get a response. _He probably just didn’t hear me._ He cupped his hands around his mouth, calling out again.

“Bendy!”

Nothing but the subtle creaking of the pipes.He clenched his fists and headed towards another office.Wrestling open a particularly undisturbed door, the dust drew another sneeze from the man.

“Gesundheit!”

Henry nearly jumped out of his skin as he spun to face the source of the voice.Bendy, standing just a few feet away, put his hands up defensively, “Sorry! Didn’t mean ta scare ya!”

Clutching his chest, the older man took a deep breath.“You can’t just creep up on me like that.”

Smile shifting to a frown, the demon started to look more guilty, “I-I’m sorry, Henry...” shifting uncomfortably, he grabbed his left arm with his right hand, a bead of ink rolled down his face as he looked away.

Henry stepped towards the toon, relaxing a bit, “It’s okay,” he put his hand on the being’s shoulder, “let’s just try to stick together from here on out.”

Bendy half-smiled up at him for a moment, until he suddenly remembered the good news he’d brought back, “Oh!And I found some rope!” He reached over his shoulder and pulled a long, black string out of seemingly nowhere, “It’s not very sturdy lookin’, but is it good enough?”

Besides being surprised that the demon seemingly had hammer-space abilities right out of a cartoon, he was almost more shocked that he’d found a rope.

“Where did you find that?” _Why does this feel wrong?_ He took his hand back to get a better look at the inky tool.

“It was just sittin’ there on the floor, by a wrench!I nabbed that, too, just in case.” Without waiting for confirmation, the demon used his other hand to pull out an unnaturally wide-mouthed wrench, doubled-sided and stained, and held it out for Henry to take.

He stared at it for a few seconds, then carefully lifted his hand for the toon to put it in.It looked... so familiar...It took him a moment to place where he’d seen it before, but when he did, his stomach twisted.

“It was just sitting there... On the floor...?”He looked back to the demon, tension building in the air around them, “Bendy... I need you to be honest with me.Is that really how you found this?”

Uncertainty swept over the ink being, his gaze locked with the human’s, “I-I think so..!” He took a step back, bringing his hand to his head, dripping a few spots of ink where he stood, “I- Henry, what’s wrong?”

The older man glanced back to the wrench, the memory of the horribly deformed versions of the Butcher Gang creatures chasing him was still fresh in his mind.The one who held the wrench, Barley, also had fishing pole for a body,which was presumably where the rope had come from.The unfortunate monsters would melt into nothingness around the Ink Demon, and perhaps that hadn’t changed. _That doesn’t mean he did it on purpose..._

“I’ve seen this before, but it belonged to someone...”Henry looked back to the ink being before him.

“Henry, I wouldn’t-“

“I know you wouldn’t.” A sigh came from the animator as he tried to calm down.“I’m sorry.”He put both items in one hand, “I shouldn’t have scared you like that.”

The toon cracked a nervous smile, “S-so I guess that makes us even, then?”

Henry smirked, placing his free hand between devil’s horns, “Even.”

Bendy relaxed, placing his hand on the animator’s.

“Alright.”The man straightened up, using both hands to examine the new found gadgets.

“Soooo, what’re we gunna use these for?”The demon picked up a hanging section of rope, meeting the other’s eyes.

“I’m going to try to use this to get us back up to the village.That should be just above us.”He tucked the wrench under his arm and started winding the rope around his hand, a sort of light headed feeling coming on, “If I can get an anchor of some sort,” dizzy, very dizzy, “I should be able to lasso this around... a floor joist... then...we can-“

 

_Thud_

 

“Henry?!”


	8. Old Scars

It was cold.Freezing cold.His limbs felt numb and heavy.It was dark.

_Am I... dead?_

He tried to open his eyes, but they felt sealed, like he was buried.He didn’t know where he was, he didn’t even know who he was.He was just... cold.

 

So cold.

 

————————————————

 

A dull ache filled his head, breath coming back into his lungs.Eyes just cracking open, he was greeted by a blurry yellow-grey ceiling.It was poorly lit, wherever he was, he couldn’t really remember.

His heart skipped a beat as translucent ink veins covered the room, a voice breaking the silence before he could collect his thoughts.

“Henry!”

His attention jumped to the tall silhouette in the doorway of the dull room.Before he could attempt to get up, the being rushed to him.

“Henry! Are you okay? Your head-what happened?! Are you-“

“Bendy..?”

The man’s vision was still blurred slightly, but the demon looming above him was different...A large drop of ink splashing on his face didn’t make it any easier to see.

“Bendy... It’s okay.I-“ he propped himself up slightly, wiping off the ink with his forearm, “I’m okay.”

His eyes finally focusing on the demon, considerably more off model than usual.Taller, only the distorted eye visible, his hands were larger, the right one no longer bearing a glove; he was melting furiously.

“What happened?” The man’s head was throbbing as he shifted into a sitting position.

“I-I dunno, you just- sorta just fell over..!”The inky being looked down at his own hands, his voice shaking, “I thought... I thought you-“

“I passed out, that’s all,” his voice calm, he brought his hand to the back of his neck, “probably exhaustion.”He looked to the wall across the room from him, “Now that I think about it, I haven’t slept for... a while.”It had to have been at least three days. 

The ink marking the walls was receding, “Maybe next time..” the demon wiping a tear from his eye before it could fall, “you could try just takin’ a nap?”

Henry snickered, “Yeah, naps work for me.”With someone else around, he actually _could_ sleep, for a change.And safely, at that.Nothing had even attempted to attack the two of them yet, which convinced the old animator that the smaller ink demon still bode an unwelcoming presence to the more unstable ink dwellers.“How long was I out?”

“Uh,” The toon had calmed down enough to have shifted back more closely to his usual self, “ _too long?_ I don’t really...” he glanced around, like there might be an answer on the walls in the form of a clock.

“Well, I’m awake now, so let’s just go on that.”The man started getting up, his legs stiffer than he expected, with the demon quickly jumping up to help.Offering both hands, Henry was impressed by the ease of which it was for the toon to pull him up.“Thanks.”He smiled at the toon, who met his eyes with concern.He had completely returned to his standard form, but it was clear something was still bothering him.

“Henry..?” The toon spoke quietly, squeezing his hand slightly, “How old are you?”He dared to meet the humans eyes, looking like he wasn’t sure he wanted an answer. 

The man had to admit, he wasn’t expecting that, “Why would-“ he hesitated, seeing it was important to the ink being, regardless of what brought it on, “...I’m 54.”

“How long...were you gone?”

Realization sunk in, guilt rising back to the forefront of his mind.He knew he shouldn’t feel responsible for being drafted, but he’d never attempted to come back, to make amends. _Maybe if I’d come back sooner..._

Silence filled the room, and the after a few minutes, the ink demon looked back down, hands releasing Henry’s before clutching his own arms, “Forged’it, it’s not important now anyway.”

“Bendy-“ the toon cut the man off by sharply turning and walking back towards the doorway.

“It’s okay, Henry, let’s just-“

“Thirty years.”

His eyes closed, the old animator thought back.Things had been very different then.He was lost in memory enough to ignore the tension building in the small room, “I left the studios thirty years ago.”Anguish, fear, frustration, doubt, grief, bewilderment, horror; everything he’d felt since returning to find the studio that he helped found in such a state, his friends, tortured, mutilated, sacrificed...He felt overwhelmed.And he didn’t want to trigger anymore painful episodes for the toon, but he didn’t even really know who was trapped behind that demon’s face, or what he knew about everything that was happening.

“It’s... hard to explain.”He opened his eyes, the words to explain everything he felt at that moment were missing, or didn’t exist.“I never expected Joey to-“ he stopped, hearing a soft sound from the ink being across the room.He was trembling slightly, but not melting.He was just...crying.

Henry sighed as made his way towards toon, but as he moved to place his hand on the demon’s shoulder, he shifted away from the man.Rubbing the tears off of his face with a gloved hand, Bendy looked over his shoulder, forcing a smile, “C’mon, old man, I told ya it doesn’t matter.”

The animator lowered his hand in defeat, the toon turning back away, “Let’s keep goin’.”

The man took a deep breath, sending a silent prayer that what he was about to do wouldn’t be a mistake.He knelt down, holding out both his arms, the demon turning around to see what he was doing, clearly confused by the man’s display, “Henry, whadya-“

“ _I_ already told _you_ that you’re not alone anymore.”

The ink demon shifted, looking from side to side like someone might see them, possibly attack them even, before looking back to the human knelt before him.Hesitantly, he moved closer, opening his arms slowly until he softly embraced the man.Henry closed his arms around the smaller toon, who gripped him more tightly in response, tears threatening to resurface, but he held them back as he buried his face into the man’s shoulder.

_This feeling..._

It was jarringly familiar.But it was peaceful, warm.Like he knew who’s soul is trapped in the inky body.Like he loves them. 

Bendy lifted his head, straightening up, but letting his hands rest on the animator’s shoulders. 

“How’re we gunna get outta here?”His voice was quiet and worried, “ _Can_ I get out?”

Henry put his hand on the toon’s, “I guess we’ll have to find out.”He stood up, but kept the devil’s hand in his, “Do you still have the rope?”

The demon perked up a bit, “Oh, yeah!And when you were, uh, sleepin’, I found some more’a those ink things you were talking about!”

The toon lead the man across the hall to a room with a desk, on it, the rope, wrench, and three ink clusters, sat beside a audio log recorder.Henry approached them, picking up the recorder first, he saw it contained a recording from Wally Franks, the old janitor.

The demon noticed his interest and spoke up, “I’ve listened to it a couple’a times, but the guy just talks about stealin’ cake.I don’t even know why he’d bother recordin’ it, ta be honest.”

Henry snickered a little, “Wally was...unique.He was a good man, though,” he paused, setting down the aged device, “you remind me of him, a little.”

“Henry, I would _never_!” Bendy put his hand to his chest, feigning indignation.The animator chuckled, hiding the pang he felt in his chest. _Maybe...?_

“I could tell you about him, if you’d like.”

The toon looked astonished by the offer, “Really?”

“Yeah.Here,” Henry took the tools and handed them to the demon, “you take these, and I’ll get the ink.”He collected up the clusters and recorder, “But I think it’s only fair that I get to listen to it, too.”

The toon smiled up at the man as he pressed the play button, starting towards the doorway, Bendy was quick to keep pace as they headed back into the maze.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe...?


	9. Teamwork Makes the Dream Work

“...I’m still not sure how he got the entire bucket stuck in there, but suffice to say, I never asked him to lend Norman a hand again!”

“H-Henry, stop!You’re, you’re crackin’ me up here!” 

Pointing to the crack running through the left side of his face, a new wave of laughter came over the toon.He could hardly catch his breath after the animator finished another story about the studio’s old custodian.The memories had been bittersweet for the man, yet the demon’s laughter gave them the light he knew they deserved.

Bendy wiped a tear from the corner of his eye, still chuckling a bit, “The guy sounds like a goldmine!”

“He was, he was...” his voice trailed off as they reached the lobby of the administrative wing.The vaulted ceiling echoed an eerie music coming from a broken radio, deflating the levity of their conversation as they made their way into the room.

Bendy looked around, jolting when his eyes discovered the large painting of the on model face staring at the twoof them from above the entry way of the offices, he hadn’t noticed it when they first came through.He quickly caught back up with the man as he headed towards the press-like ‘Ink Maker’ in the corner of the room.

“This is the machine we needed the ink for,” Henry motioned to the contraption before them, “could you set that dial to the cross pipe?”

He placed the ink clusters into the machine as the toon tampered with the setting on the side.When the demon gave him a thumbs up, Henry pulled the lever, the machine clunking and shaking for a brief moment before a large piece of piping appeared before him.

The demon watched it with wide eyes as the animator checked it over.

“Nifty, right?” He smiled at the toon, who nodded enthusiastically, “Can I have the rope?”

Bendy reached back behind himself and pulled out the tool, handing it back to the man.He watched silently as the animator started with one end of the rope, letting the rest fall to the ground as he tied it securely around the middle of the pipe.He started winding it around the center, alternating the direction he was wrapping it a few times, until he finally tied another knot around the mess of rope bound to the cross piece.

As Henry checked the security of it, the demon couldn’t help but ask, “What’re we gunna use that for?”

“Hopefully,” he gave it one last good tug, “we can use it to get back up to the floor I fell through.Which is actually,” he began gathering the slack loosely around his wrist and nodded towards the other side of the room “right outside that doorway.”

The toon turned to look at the exit, the human walking around him and towards it, he looked back at the devil, “Ready?”

Nodding enthusiastically, he followed.A river of ink running through a short hall greeted the two as they left the Administration leg of the studios.Henry looked up to a very distinct, gaping hole in the ceiling, the inky demon following his gaze and cringing slightly.

“ _Ouch_.”

The animator chuckled soutlying, “I know, right?”They both waded into the ink, looking up at the pale light of the hall several yards above them.

“You’re made of some stern stuff, Henry, I’ll give ya that.”Bendy frowned as he lifted his hand to his chin, eyes fixated on their new goal.

“Suppose so...” the human strained to see a find a target to aim his makeshift anchor, slowly letting the rope unwind so that he could take up the end of it.

“So, that’s where we’re headed?” the toon squinted, fully fixated on the level above them.

“Mhmm.” _There’s_ _no_ _guarantee_ _that_ _whatever_ _I_ _aim_ _for_ _won’t_ _just_ _break,_ _too_.He shifted slightly, getting a better footing, as he decided on the frame around the entry of the hallway.It wasn’t visible from here, but he mine as well give it a shot.

Bracing himself, Henry started swinging the pipe when his concentration was suddenly disturbed by a shift in the ground beneath him.Only a gasp could escape the human before the ink swallowed him like quicksand.

Whispering, crying, yelling, screaming.The complete darkness of the ink surrounded him, a somewhat familiar sensation, however this time, there was no light to guide him back to the studio.

_What_ _happened?_ _Did_ _something_ _attack_ _me?_

Before he had the chance to think of an explanation, he was falling forward.Landing like he’d only tripped, he immediately recognized the ground of the Lost Ones’ Village.The ink covering him dissipated quickly as he began pushing himself back up, leaving the rope on the ground.

_What_ _in_ _the-_

“Henry?!Henry?!?”

The panicked cries of his companion snapped him back to his senses.Turning until he faced the same hallway that he had been looking up at only seconds ago, he hurried back to the edge of the broken floor.

“Bendy!Bendy, I’m up here!”

The demon jerked his head up to face the human.

“Henry?!How in the hell didja-“

“The ink!I’m not sure what happened...” looking back at the rope, he knew what to do.Turning back to the toon nervously looking around, he began translating his plan, “Wait right there!I can-“

He didn’t get very far before the ink being desperately leapt towards the opening in the ceiling, sinking his claws into the structure between the levels.Briefly scrambling, with two more leaps, he grasped the stable board Henry was now kneeling in front of to give him room.Immediately, the older man grabbed the toon’s hand and shoulder to help pull him up.

Bendy wasted no time in grappling around the man, shaking furiously, “Don’t-don’t do that again...!”

Wrapping his arms around the devil, he stared blankly ahead, trying to process everything that had happened. _That_ _was..._ _something_ _else._

“I... I can’t make any promises, I’m not really sure what happened.”He pulled back slightly, shifting his hands to the toon’s shoulders so they could see each other, “Are you sure... that wasn’t you?”Recalling the less-friendly Demon’s ability to manipulate the ink, it seemed possible the toonier devil may have retained the power without memory of how to use it.

“Me..?! I-I don’t think-“ framing his face with his hands, Bendy glanced around anxiously, “You think... I... How could I-“ he started dripping, but retained his form.

“Bendy, hey, hey, look at me.”The animator placed his hands over the demon’s, recapturing his focus, “It’s okay, it helped us.It was actually pretty clever, I’d say.”

“You really think... I did that?” Hands dropping slightly, Bendy still looked concerned.

Henry smiled, nodding reassuringly, “Makes sense to me.”

Still looking unsure, the demon turned his gaze to the ground.The animator slowly turned his gaze back to their surroundings, glancing back to the toon with a distraction in mind.

“This is the harbor.”Interest drew the demon’s eyes back to the human, “We’ve still got quite a way to go, but I think we’re gunna need a boat.”

“A boat?”

Henry nodded, looking back over his should at the structures just behind them.

“I wasn’t here for very long before, so I didn’t really look around too much.Do you feel up to helping me?”

“Yeah.”

Both getting back to their feet, Henry made his way over to the rope.Wrapping it diagonally across his torso and securing the pipe by his hip, the devil’s smile returned as they entered the makeshift town.

The silence now eerier than the outdated music on the previous level, Henry approached the building Sammy had resided in the last time he’d been through.The demon wandered to the neighboring structures, attempting to take in his new surroundings.

“Do people live down here?”The devil asked, picking up a stray piece of paper, an inky handprint the only thing on it.There were several like it, the animator rested his hand on top of one on the wall in front of him.

“Sort of...” he turned back to see Bendy staring directly above him, his toonish face soft, sorrowful.

“...despair...?” the demon met Henry’s eyes for a moment, unsure of himself and this world that had been all he’d known for so long.

The human looked up to the sign above him, reading only ‘NOT MONSTERS’. _What_ _is_ _he..._

_The_ _decoder!_

Placing his hand on his forehead in frustration, the older man cursed under his breath before turning back to the toon. _He_ _can_ _read_ _the_ _hidden_ _ink?_

“Bendy, what does this sign say?” repressing his frustration with himself for leaving the decoder back in the Ink Machine, he cooled his tone in an attempt to come off more curious.

“What’re ya talking about, Henry?The things literally glowin’.”He gestured to the sign above the doorway.

“All I can see is ‘not monsters’.”He could see the surprise on the demon’s face, but there was something else there, something like... discomfort, maybe?He was clearly hesitant, but acquiesced after a moment.

“Um, it says ‘once people, now fallen into despair’.”

He didn’t know what else he expected in this place.A lump in his throat, the animator turned back to face the sign, taking a few steps back and off the step in front of the make-shift house. _Is_ _there_ _anything_ _I_ _could_ _do_ _for_ _them..?_ He could hear Bendy shift slightly, reminding him of what was most important now - getting out alive.

The animator turned back to the anxious toon, “Thank you.”He made his way back to the devil, and rested his hand on his should, “Now let’s see if we can find something to use for a raft.”


	10. Stars

The gentle sounds of the ink lapping at the small wooden boat were soothing, the rhythmic splashes of the board he used for a paddle almost lulling the older man into a state of relaxation as he guided the small vessel down the oversized pipelines. 

He looked back at his childlike companion, watching the slow moving waves behind them, dutifully keeping watch for trouble.The last time Henry had been through these tunnels, a rather large, ominous arm had nearly... had nearly... _apprehanded_ him.

  _He’d_   _like_ _that_ _one_. 

However, the animator had decided to leave out the details, opting to refer to it only as “something”, in an attempt to avoid triggering another episode.

After looking around the small village for a while, the two had found a shoddy wooden boat, assembled similarly to the other structures around the harbor, but functional nonetheless.The animator had contemplated turning back to retrieve the decoder, but decided against it.For now, he’d asked Bendy to tell him if he saw any golden text in the meantime.

He could tell the devil was curious about the things all around them, about the people who had attacked them earlier, and he could read the man like a book.Henry could tell by the look in his eye that he knew the old animator was withholding a lot from him.And unfortunately, he couldn’t say the same.The human couldn’t gauge how much the demon knew or remembered at any given time.He just always seemed curious, melancholy at times, and he genuinely seemed to understand Henry in a way that, quite honestly, scared him.Almost like he could read his mind.At times, he even looked like he scares himself, a little.

“Hey, Henry?”

“Hm?”

“Who is ‘Sammy’?”

A chill swept over him.Henry waited for the toon to look at him, but he stay fixated on the ink behind them.

“He’s... He was the music director.”He turned back away, hoping this ominous feeling in the pit of his stomach would go away, and that his answer would be enough for now.

 

“Was?”

 

There was something hollow in the demon’s tone, and now the ominous feeling was spreading, tightening Henry’s chest.He closed his eyes, taking a breath before turning back around to look at the toon.

“Was.I don’t-I don’t think he’s still here.Why do you...?”

“Is he dead?”

The slightest waver in his voice shattered the tension.Henry pulled the board in, resting it by his side as he shifted towards the toon, careful not to unbalance the boat.

“...Bendy?”

The demon turned his head to look over his should at the older man, clearly not wanting to commit to learning the truth.

“I... I don’t know.”

He’d seen Tom sink an axe into the raving composer’s head, but he also thought he’d heard the Ink Demon kill him well before that.He wasn’t quite sure how mortality worked down here, so it was, for the most part, the truth.

Bendy sighed as he turned back to the inky river.The animator was tempted to ask if he remembered his “prophet” at all, but again, decided not to press.He’d probably just mentioned him before, when he was talking about Wally.

Repositioning himself, Henry resumed rowing, letting his mind replay that last fight between the two of them in his mind.Letting his mind replay the fight Allison and Tom had saved him from losing.He knew they could all escape together, but he didn’t know how to convince them.He didn’t even know how to find them.

 

 

The dock coming into view, Henry came back from his thoughts.Yawning, he rubbed the back of his neck.It felt like it had been hours, but he knew the river wasn’t that long.Time moved more slowly, the longer he was trapped here.

“This is our stop.”He stood up, mindful to keep from upturning them, and used the board to pull them close enough to reach the dock.

Bendy rubbed his eyes with both hands, less carefully standing to follow the man.Henry was quick the steady them before they both climbed up onto the small brick island.

An intimidating, dimly lit corridor stood before them, yet, like before, the demon seemed entirely unfazed.Although, he also seemed a tad lackluster - tired, even.

Henry offered a sympathetic smile, the toon smiling back, before they started making their way down the hallway.

They walked in silence, the older man carefully watching the decrepit crates and other scattered building materials for any sign of an attack.While they hadn’t encountered any searchers or the butcher gang on their way back to the upper levels, the man couldn’t help but feel like the unusual calm was building up to something worse than he’d encountered yet.

As they rounded another bend, a brighter light came into view.The animator tensed up, the thought of finding Allison and Tom in their previous hideout wasn’t exactly something he was sure he felt up to, at the moment.The feeling passed quickly enough, logic reminding him that it wouldn’t be a smart move to hide in a place someone they now considered to be an enemy knows about.

Bendy paused, realizing his friend had fallen behind, looking back to him quizzically.

“This is where I stayed with Tom and Allison, for a while...”

The older man approached the room, running his hand against the doorway as he passed through it.He laughed a little, “They actually held me captive here.”

“I think you ‘n me have a different understanding of the word ‘friends’.” While he meant is as a joke, the demon watched the man with a trace of concern.He was standing in front a a doorway with broken boards around it, looking into what looked more like a closet than anything.“Henry?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you... okay?”

“Yeah.”In spite of himself, he did miss their company.

“I can’t see it now, but before I noticed a lot of golden ink over here, if you wanted to have a look.”

Bendy approached the cramped room, only peaking his head in at first, as though it might be some kind of trap.Or at least until he noticed the regular drawings on the ground.He knelt down, resting his hands beside the mostly decimated drawings.

“Did you do these?”

Barely remembering the sketches, Henry laughed again, “Yeah, I mean, I had to keep busy somehow.”

The demon ran his finger gently along the online of one, before slowly bringing his hand up to his face. 

“Did you...” he sat back, placing both hands on his head now, feeling it gently, as if he wasn’t sure what he looked like, “did you create me?”

Taken aback, the animator wasn’t quite sure how to answer.While he had conceptualized the character, Joey was the one obsessed with bringing him to life.Could he take credit for the being before him?

The toon looked to the human now, sheer terror on his face, ink breaking up the outline of its shape as it started running.

“Are you the creator?”

“I-I don’t-“ panicking, Henry knelt down, “No. No, I never wanted any of this.I never knew-“

The demon trembling now, tears forming in his eyes, “Joey said-Joey.. I-I,” pulling away, he fell back, “Joey?H-Henry?Who is...? Henry?!”The ink was covering his eyes, blocking the man from view.He pulled himself backwards until he hit the wall on the other side of the ‘cell’, “Joe-Joey, I-I-“, he was crying more than speaking, he sounded so lost and confused...Henry could feel the heat in his face as he wiped a tear from his eye.

“Bendy, please listen to me.”Henry pulled himself closer, reaching out to the toon, “I-I didn’t know... about any of this.”

The demon’s body was destabilizing, blinded by his own ink, he could only hear the human getting closer, but he couldn’t shrink away any further, burying his face in his hands.

“You left me.You left _us_.”

“I... I left you... and Joey?”

The shaking stopped, the demon frozen in place, which was somehow more alarming.He shoulders dropped, the excess ink sliding slowly off into a puddle around the two.Practically mimicking the other, Henry remained still, unsure of how to proceed.

The redefined, gloved hands slid slowly into the devil’s lap, ink still obscuring his eyes, a vacant expression was all the older man could see.

“Joey?”

Henry remained frozen.Was he asking _for_ Joey?

“Henry?Who turned out the lights?!”Life breathed back into the cartoonish devil as he started rubbing the ink from his face with the sides of his hands.

“Henry?! What in the-!”

The animator couldn’t help but laugh from relief as the toon stumbled back slightly.

“Here, let me-“ he shook his hand as clean as possible, leaning closer to wipe some of the ink off of the demon’s face.A warm smile greeted the man as soon the the toon could see him.

“Heya!So who’s Joey?”

Instantly realizing Bendy didn’t remember the short episode that had just taken place, the animator wasn’t sure how to respond.

“He’s, uh,” _don’t_ _lie_ , “an old friend.” _How_ _did_ _he_ _know_ _who_ _I_ _was_ _from_ _the_ _get_ - _go_ _but_ _not_ _Joey?_

The devil cocked his brow, clearly wanting to ask more, but trust in the man’s judgement convinced him to let that sleeping dog lie.Besides that, something far more interesting had caught his eye.

“Stars.”His eyes wide as he looked beyond the man in front of him, golden stars lighting up the ceiling in the cramped room.

Henry looked to where he knew they were, despite knowing he couldn’t see them, glad that they could comfort the devil.

“Do real stars look like that?”

He looked back to the toon, heart dropping a bit, “Kinda.They’re even more beautiful.”

Bendy finally pulled his eyes away from the drawings to focus back on the man, hope swelling in his chest.

“You’re gunna show me, right?”

The animator nodded, clenching his teeth. _I_ _sure_ _hope_ _so_.


	11. Coping Mechanisms

  Pain.Excruciating pain deep in his chest.Deep enough to radiate throughout the rest of his body.He couldn’t think, it hurt so much.There was only pain.He opened his eyes but it was dark.Everything was black.

 

A world in pain.

 

————————————————

His eyes stung as they cracked open.The pain in his back was mostly from strain, the wound had healed enough that Henry wasn’t worried about reopening it.The throbbing headache, however, was practically just a constant anymore.

Pushing himself up a bit, it took a little maneuvering to sit up completely without bothering his back more so.His “bed” was an outdated emergency cot, which didn’t exactly provide the best lumbar support.

Without wasting a moment, a cartoony, black and white face popped around the curtain draped over the fencing that blocked the “cell” from the rest of the room.

“Mornin’, sunshine,” Bendy chimed, “made yer favorite!“ his body twirled into the room and under his head, which remained stationary, a bowl of soup between his mismatched hands, “It’s got all the vital nutrients, ya know, like vitamins B and A,” _where_ _did_ _he_ _get_ _that_ _apron_? “and C and O,” _where_ _did_ _he_ _find_ _that_ _bowl_? “and vitamin N!”

The animator chuckled as the demon handed him the dish, “Thanks.You know, I think I might be vitamin O deficient.”

The toon giggled, “Vitamin O?Nah, you’ve got plenty, Old man.”

“Thanks.Thank you.” He teased in response.

“Old, obstinate, ornery,” the devil mused as he made his way out of the cove, “original, opportunistic, optimistic...”

Henry sighed, shaking his head, more amused than anything.It felt good to laugh again.

 

Once he’d finished, the older man ventured back into the main living quarters of the safe house, finding the demon lying on the floor, drawing.The image reminded him again of his own children, as he made his way over to the toon.

Bendy looked up at him, sitting up so the man could get a better look, “It’s not as good as yours.”A rough picture of a lanky, wolf character holding a bone in his mouth was the predominant drawing amongst the scribbles.

“I’d say it’s pretty spot on,” he nodded to his companion.“Where were you when we couldn’t meet the deadlines?”

The toon smiled bashfully, a grey blush on his face as he looked back down at the scribbles.His smile dropped a little as he rested his hand along the image of his friend.

“Boris...”

Resting his hand on the demon’s shoulder, the animator attempted to comfort him.

“Is Boris...,” Bendy look back up to the human, “is Boris... dead?”Inky black tears welling up in his eyes, “...did I kill him?” His voice only a whisper now.

Henry took a deep breath, kneeling beside the small toon, “No, you never...” he cradled Bendy’s face to keep his head up, “you’ve never hurt him.”Swallowing the lump in his throat, he looked back to the drawing, “I couldn’t-“

“Henry...”

The toon held the hand holding him, “I’m sorry,” a few tears streamed down his face, “I’m sorry you’re stuck here.I’m sorry I hurt you.I’m sorry that this-this-“ The tears were flowing freely now, choking him up before he could finish.

The old animator pulled him in, “This isn’t your fault.”

 

 

As his crying tapered off, the demon wiped the tears from his face, pulling away from Henry to sit beside him, “This livin’ stuff is harder than it looks.”

“It gets easier.”

The toon shot him a sarcastic look of disbelief.

“I know that this... all of this, is difficult,” _to_ _say the least, “_ but if there’s anything you want to tell me, or talk about, you don’t have to be worried.”

Bendy watched him carefully, hearing each word, considering each thought.

“I definitely don’t have all the answers, but we’re a team now,” he rested his hand back on the devil’s shoulder, “you can trust me.”

The demon nodded conscientiously.After hugging the toon’s shoulders with his arm, the animator got up, his knee cracking loudly in the process.

“Yeah, life gets easier.” the toon teased as he got up swiftly.

Henry rolled his eyes as he made his way over to the beaten up dresser sitting crookedly towards the center of the room.The rope, pipe, and a hatchet he’d found in the fish tank when he and Bendy had first scouted out the room sat undisturbed on it.

“You sure you don’t want me to carry that?” The toon pointed to the hatchet as the human replaced the rope across his torso.

Picking it up contemplatively, he looked back to the demon. _Is_ _giving_ _him_ _a_ _hatchet_ _really_ _the_ _best_ _idea_? _Could_ _just_ _give_ _him_ _the_ _rope_...

“Here, look!”The devil opened his hands, gesturing for the older man to give him the axe, whom cautiously obliged.Without missing a beat, the toon flung the weapon over his shoulder.

Henry flinched, surprised by the demon, but quickly realized it never hit the ground.

 _Hammer_ - _space_!

The human had forgotten about the toon’s bizarre ability.In reality, he was most likely utilizing the “ink dimension”, as Henry had come to call it, but didn’t quite understand it, as it came naturally.

Exaggerating his response, the animator gasped loudly, looking around the devil.Picking him up, checking the floor beneath him, the toon started wriggling, laughing in spite of him self.

“Hey, hey! Put me-put me down!”He tried to glare at the human, but couldn’t maintain his posterity.

Setting him back on the ground, the animator playfully mocked the toon, “That was one hell of a magic trick!”

“Laugh it up now,” the devil failed another attempt to stifle his giggling, “but I’m gunna put you back there if ya try that again!”

“Fair enough.”The human made his way towards the shelves on the other side of the room.Mostly just cans of soup lined them, but a few cans were empty, holding tools instead.Picking up another wrench and a slightly rusty screwdriver, he turned back to the toon, “Got room for two more?”

The demon rushed over, nodding enthusiastically.“Whadya got?”

“More tools.” He handed them to the excited demon, who quickly whipped them back behind himself.

“Ready to press on?”

Both looked to the exit, the toon’s smile faltering, “Yeah, ‘spose so.”

With one last scan of the room, Henry headed towards the doorway, Bendy at his side.

“How do you feel about amusement parks?”


	12. Around and Around

Light cascaded down the narrow stairwell, assuring that the doorway ahead was unobstructed.Clenching and relaxing his hands every few steps, the aging animator tried to focus on his breathing.An attempt to drown out the dread that sat in the back of his mind as he approached the top of the stairs.

Creaking and breathing.

The unsettling familiarity of it all gnawed at his subconscious.He’d been this way before, but only once, under the guidance of his then captors, so why did it all feel so familiar?

As he reached the entryway, he found himself back in the control room for the “haunted house” ride Alice, or Lisa, had trapped him on before.Relatively compact in size, there was an elongated console on the right side wall littered with buttons and levers to trigger different things, or perhaps control the speed.It seemed mostly useless, especially now that Tom had ripped the last functioning lever off to prevent any further “joyrides”.

Besides that, there was a desk with a few schematics for improvements and additions, and three practically unused stools.The lights seemed more dim now that his eyes had adjusted from the unlit stairwell, the one in the far left corner flickering occasionally. 

He felt a gentle grip on his left arm, and looked to see the small toon glancing around from behind him.

This place gives me the creeps, too.

Silently, Henry moved his arm to take the devil’s hand in his.Heading to the doorway illuminated by the failing florescent light, the human glanced back at the desk one more time before he opened the door that lead to the ride itself.

The animator stepped down onto the ledge left for maintenance workers and ride operators to get into and out of the ride, mindful of the broken decorations.Pausing to make sure Bendy followed suit, they continued warily down the track.

Sections boarded off, lamenting messages scribed in ink, tattered clothes covering unused cars - the images more haunting than initially intended.Finally, they reached the ballroom.The same mess remaining, only absent were the bodies of Alice and Boris, which Henry was grateful for.Paintings hung high above them, a grand chandelier no longer lighting them.Boarded up windows that lead to nowhere above poorly aged furniture - it was hard to tell what was there for effect and what was yet another symptom of this ink-diseased place.

Casting a quick glance back to his companion, he found the demon slouched, slightly, watching the floor in front of him as they moved.

He’s just tired.

He’d reiterated that sentiment to himself several times, but a strangling anxiety prevented him from simply asking.The toon had become much more... quiet.Perhaps seeing all of this again was pushing him back into a bad mindset, or maybe it was because he literally hadn’t rested once since they left the ink machine.Does he even need sleep?

The ballroom was the last section before they could finally escape the claustrophobic machine, but it was hard to find any peace of mind in this place, no matter where you found yourself, which, for the team, just happened to be a warehouse, at the moment, housing rides and games for the abandoned Bendy-themed amusement park, Bendyland.

Both looking around and then back to each other, Henry smiled slightly, but the toon’s expression remained distressed.Releasing the humans hand, Bendy walked towards a line up of unfinished carousel horses.It was apparent they’d never been used, but they were chipped and faded, from the years they sat in the rotting studio, never meant to realize their potential.He ran a single gloved hand over the face of one, almost as if he believed it could feel him, and that he could comfort it.

Henry watched him with a heavy heart.Surely, there were no children involved in any of Joey’s antics, right?Who’s soul could possibly dwell inside such an innocent being?He was realizing it was most likely someone he’d never met, much like Tom and Allison, but it couldn’t really be an actual child under that inky surface, could it?

Blinking the thoughts away, the animator’s attention coasted to the games on the other side of the room.Walking towards them, the plush toys hanging on the interior of one game tent were what guided him.Reaching over the counter of the “shooting gallery”, Henry plucked a Boris plush hanging by a rusty hook that practically disintegrated with the slightest tug.He carried it back around to find the inky devil on the opposite side of the crates and pallets sat upon one of the unusable horses.As he turned to look at his human companion, a smile lit up the toon’s face.Jumping off the ride, he rushed over to the older man, who chuckled before he held the toy out in offering, ”Thought you might like this.”

“Boris!” The toon hugged the plush tightly before looking back to the man, “Thanks, Henry.”

His smile was sincere, but the sadness was still there as he held the plush closer.

Thinking back the treacherous paths that lead him to this point after his previous decent, the older man took a deep breath.Bertrum’s office would be as good a place as any to rest again, and it had been a long... day?

“I think we should probably take another break,” he pointed up to the wooden balcony overlooking the room, “that room was pretty safe, last time I checked.”

The toon turned to look at their new destination, nodding before looking back at the man.

As they carried on towards the upstairs room, they were both moving slowly.Henry’s legs felt heavy as he pushed himself up another staircase, the ache in his back creeping back up his spine.However, it was unsettling to see the demon struggle with agility, as he, too, seemed to be dragging himself up the stairs, plush in tow.

The short, twisted hallway that met them on the balcony led to an open, multilevel room; props pushed up against the ink stained walls, puddles of the sticky substance everywhere, and most ominously of all, hanging cages with bent bars occasionally dripping a drop or two.It’s only saving grace was really the lighting.It was one of the few well lit places Bendy had seen since the two had left the Ink Machine. 

The devil followed the human as he made his way towards the stairs leading to the upper level, when he suddenly noticed the large, metal face looming above them.A shiver passed through him as he rushed to take the animators hand again, whom comfortingly squeezed his in response.

They found themself in an office space, littered with notes and sketches and blueprints.The older man was relieved that the people planning all of this hadn’t finished more of it.

Walking to the far side of the room, the animator found a relatively even patch of flooring and sat down, the devil hesitantly copying his actions.After removing his tool, the animator relaxed and lied down, Bendy again mimicking his actions.Lying back to back, Henry closed his eyes as Bendy held his Boris close to his chest.The gentle sounds of the toon’s breathing and the ink leaking from a pipe on the far side of the room were somehow relaxing, and the animator nodded off into a peaceful sleep.


	13. Deeper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics coming soon!

The backs of his eyelids lightened as his consciousness came back to him.Henry’s eyes opened to see much larger ones staring back at him.

“Good morning to you, too.”

The toon’s face was neutral, curious perhaps, until he realized the animator was awake.A wide smile spread across his face.

“Ya slept for quite some time, old man!”The devil sat up off the floor excitedly, crossing his legs.

“Did you just... watch me the whole time?”

The demon paused, looking insecure, “Is that bad?” He was blushing slightly.

The animator chuckled, “No, that just seems awfully boring.”He pushed himself up to sit beside the toon, who’s smile came back with the reassurance.

Practically hopping to his feet, Bendy headed straight for the stairs, “I mean, I didn’t watch the whole time!”Spinning on his heal, he turned back to the human, “I read summa Beatrice’s writings!”

“Bertrum,” the older man corrected, smirking as he re-equipped his makeshift tool, “find anything interesting?”He pushed himself to his feet as the demon took a few exaggerated steps towards the table beside them.

“Mostly just mechanical mumbo-jumbo,” he shifted a few of the papers around, “jargon, if you will.” he mocked, straightening up, presenting his findings to the human.

As he stepped closer, the man picked up a particularly clean folder.

Must’ve been buried under the others.

More of the same.Ramblings, schematics, possible ride names - nothing relevant.He replaced the folder and looked back to his companion.The toon was looking at the mess of stationary, but he didn’t seem to be entirely present, and he was frowning.

“Bendy?”

The devil immediately broke the trance and grinned back at him, “Yeah, boss?”

That’s a new one.

“Let’s get back to it.”He tried to sound positive, but he could feel the strain in his throat.

Somethings wrong.

Without noticing the animators concern, the devil headed straight for the stairs.Following more slowly, as he reached the bottom of the first flight, the human caught a glimpse of the toon steadying himself against the wall of the lower level, like he’d lost his balance.Leaving another stain on the wall as he quickly pushed himself back up, he headed for the center of the room.Turning to watch Henry catch up as he reached the bottom of the second flight, he seemed quite unsettled by the large stone shrine of the on-model character towering beside them.

Silently, the animator reassured him by resting his hand on the demon’s shoulder.He sighed, causing the human’s hand to shift unusually.The animator noticed the inky being was dripping more than usual, and while he was maintaining his model, the ink itself seemed unstable.

His brow furrowed, the old animator frustrated himself.He didn’t know what to ask or say or do; something was wrong.But he just didn’t know how to approach it.

Damn it.

Echoing the toon’s sigh, Henry forced a calm smile, “This next parts gunna be a little strange.”

“Strange is my bread and buttah, Henry.”Now they were both humoring each other.

“Yeah?You’re not claustrophobic, are you?”He motioned to the open vent in the far wall of the room.

“Me?Scared?Of Ol’ Saint Nick?”

Shoulders dropping, the animator rolled his eyes, eliciting a more genuine laughter from the devil.

“I would make you go first if you had any idea where we’re going.”

The toon continued to giggle as the man approached the vent, “Come on.”

The giggling stopped, “Wait, you’re serious?”

“Do I look like I’m joking?” The older man looked back, smirking and squinting both eyes.

The devil began laughing again, but it tapered more quickly.He placed his hand to his chest as he took a few deeper breaths.

Looking down and then into the vent, the animator slowly started to climb in.As he made some progress, he could hear the toon climb in behind him.

The metal creaked beneath them, threatening to drop them if they so much as paused.The low hum of the ink flowing through the pipes around them was much clearer now.Henry’s breath felt hot on his cheeks as it blew back against him.

Several turns later, they rounded another corner, finding light shining towards the end of their path from another vent opening.The human slowed down instinctively, remembering the Ink Demon reaching through the slats in the vent cover to grab him.It wasn’t the one he’d come in through, but perhaps it led to an alternative route back upstairs.

Closing the distance, the cover still had ink stains on it.Shifting for balance support, the human used his shoulder as a battering ram.With two good hits, the cover broke off, opening to the top of a small room. 

Moving forward, he began pushing himself backwards so he could get out feet first.Motioning to Bendy that he would help him, the toon climbed out headfirst, the animator placing his hands under the other’s shoulders.

Once he was safely on the ground, the older man looked at the ink on his hands while the demon immediately walked towards a desk on the opposite side of the room.The place was a mess, but Henry recognized it.The desk was littered with folders, an audio log was sat against an old wooden chair, and there was gaping hole in the wall across from the door.They were on Level 9.This was an accounting office.

He looked back to the demon, excited to tell him they were further along than he’d expected, but his words stuck in his throat when he saw the devil’s head bowed, both hands on the desk to keep him steady.

“Bendy, are you-“

“Yeah! Yeah-“ facing the animator, he waved off the worry.Ink was dripping down the toon’s face now, “d’ya think we could...” he wrapped his arms around his torso, shoulders forward like he had a chill, “take another break?”

Moving forward quickly, the human steadied the toon against his side, “Of course.”

They walked out into a hallway, ink prints staining the floor where the devil stepped.He had been deteriorating since the lost harbor - since his... stunt.It must’ve taxed him.Henry scolded himself for not prying more on the toon’s condition sooner.This was out of hand.But now... he still didn’t know what to do.

They made their way to the stairs on the right.The demon hesitated when they arrive at them, so the older man carefully scooped him up.Wordlessly, the toon thanked him by pressing his head against the man’s chest, prompting a knowing smile from him.

As they descended, the human looked around the open room.A platform half covered in empty barrels, along with a chest and empty shelves, awaited them at the bottom of the stairs.A narrow bridge above a small river of ink led to a wide staircase before the jarring, unkept Alice Angel sculptured doorway.The metal banner in her hands read “She’s quite a gal!”.

Quite something, I’ll give her that...

The animator headed towards the chest, resting his companion down and against it so that he could sit up.Wiping away a bead of ink as it streamed towards his pie-cut eye, the older man sighed as he leaned to his side and sat beside the exhausted toon.

“Is there anything else I can do?”

Forcing a smile, the devil shook his head, “I just-I just need to rest.”

Watching him for a moment longer, the animator eventually drew his gaze back to the room.He couldn’t see it from that position, but he looked towards the place he knew the lift would be in, if Alice hadn’t destroyed it.They just needed to get back to where Henry had fallen through the floor at the beginning of all of this, only then they would have a fighting chance.Questions, uncertainty, and theories carried the man deeper and deeper into thought as he contemplated the possibilities.

 

There is always hope, right?


	14. Broken Record

All was calm.But calm never lasts in a place like this.As the smaller ink devil recovered his strength, the aging animator let his mind drift back into the parts of the studio he could not see.Planning, contemplating, debating.

Movement in his peripheral vision snapped the man’s attention back to world around him.Pale grey veins of ink were spreading across the floor beneath him, startling him up into a crouch.A mixture of fear and concern hit him as he followed the tendrils back to the demon beside him.Melting more than before, he weakly reached out for the human.

“Henry...” the man hurried to brace the inky devil, but he was too unstable to get a good grip, “it... hurts...” he looked scared.

Like a nightmare, the animator could only watch as the veins became darker, consuming more of the room while the demon became more distorted.  Ink began leaking from the walls, from the floorboards.  Coming up and out of the river beside them.  

Desperately, he tried to keep the toon together, but the ink was practically liquid at this point.  He wasn’t just melting, he was changing again, reverting to the more lithe, threatening demon.  Without warning, he pushed the human away, falling forward and onto his hands.

Henry hit the floor in front of the barrels, gasping with the impact.He propped himself up quickly, but was more shocked by the action than from the blow.Getting his feet back under him, he stopped.  Bendy hadn’t don’t that by accident...was he trying to protect him?

The demon was rapidly changing now, almost the size of his monstrous form prior to his recovery.He was crying out, the multidimensional voice of many was louder than his own.The ink practically covered the room entirely, and even began working its way up the man’s legs.Stumbling backwards, he tripped on a barrel and fell back onto his elbow, allowing the ink to spread up his arm, as well.

Wailing voices filled his mind as the ink possessed more of his body, pulling him back into that hell, the pool of souls lost to the ink.

_Help me, please help me!_

_Why? Why am I here?_

_No! Please no!_

_He will save us!_

He could barely see the room now, he could feel the pull of many hands, grabbing him, drawing him deeper into the madness.It was almost... specific.The were pulling him somewhere... _to Bendy?_

A terrifying thought crossed his mind, fueling his fight to resurface.He jolted his head to one side, pulling one arm free, and used it to free his other hand.The ink retreated as he forced himself back to his feet and half ran, half fell into the miracle station beside the mountain of barrels.He turned to watch the ink - it was no longer flowing away from the demon, but drawing to him.He was still extremely unstable, on all fours, but his cries were softer now.

The animator hadn’t realized he was shaking until he put one hand on the wall behind him to steady himself.He watched in silence as the ink continued oozing out of every board and every wall and made its way toward the ink demon.

The epiphany resurfaced, nauseating the older man.

_He’s drawing on the souls.That’s how he maintains his form.He relies on the souls._

 

——

 

Eventually, the flow slowed.The ink thinned back to veins as they receded back to the demon.Henry was crouched now, leaning against the inner wall of the doorless miracle station.He stood up and followed them, stopping halfway back to the now shrinking devil.The excess ink pooled off of him and dissipated quickly into the floor, and soon, the toony demon was visible once again. He collapsed onto his side, cueing the animator to finally approach him.

Kneeling behind him, the older man rested his hand on the toon’s shoulder. 

_He doesn’t know.He couldn’t know._ It was pretty apparent he hadn’t done that on purpose.

_It’s not his fault._

To some degree, Henry knew those were just excuses, but what could he do?If his life force was the soul of others, how would he sustain an existence outside the studios?Were they suffering?Do they fade?

His train of thought was derailed when the devil shifted gently.He opened his eyes, sleepily looking back at the man behind him.Rolling carefully onto his back, he looked more clearly up at the human.They watched each other for a moment before the toon smiled.

“See?Just needed some rest.”

A chill shot him straight to the bone.Another unfortunate lapse in memory left another piece of the puzzle missing.The animator strained a smile, nodding his agreement.

“You okay?Yer all... wet.”

He let out a soft laugh as the toon reached a gloved hand up to brush a bead of sweat off of his face.

“Yeah, I’m okay.”He sat back on his ankles, leaving room for the devil to sit up right.Although he didn’t seem convinced, the toon smiled meekly, before his eyes stretched wider, and he stood up.Smile fading, he cupped the man’s face in his hands, patting softly, like he was inspecting him.Moving in cautious ways, he ran his hands down Henry’s shoulders to his elbows.After a pause at his knees, the demon walked in a circle around the man as he watched him with a weary curiosity.

He finally stopped beside the animator, shifting his gaze to his own hands, opening and closing them a couple of times as his face scrunched into a scowl.He took his spot back sitting in front of the man, looking intensely at his face, until he reached up to feel it over yet again, when the human finally stopped the hands with his own.

“Bendy, _what_ are you doing?”

Silence filled the space between them as their hands drifted downward until the devil pulled his back to examine them once again.

“I-“ The toon started looking around the room, like he was hoping something would give him an excuse to put the conversation on hold.Or maybe he was afraid something would stop him from finishing.

“I think I...” He finally focused his eyes on the ground between the two of them.“I think I had a dream.”

The animator waited patiently for him to elaborate, but it was clear he wasn’t sure the devil would.He began looking around again, like he was expecting something, or someone, to stop him if he tried.

“I just wanted to make sure you-“

He froze as his eyes found what he was looking for, horror spreading across his face.Henry followed his gaze to what appeared to be a searcher forming at the top of the staircase, but something was off.It was larger, more humanoid in stature, and it... oh god, is that the projectionist?!

No - it had two heads.It was some sort of... amalgamation.Wires and other indiscernible objects jutted out at odd angles all over its body.What he thought was a leg was a third arm. _Is that-_ One of the objects became more visible as it clumsily pulled itself onto the first step-  _Sammy’s mask?_

Quickly pushing himself up, the older man stood defiantly in front of the small demon, “I’m gunna need that hatchet back.”

The toon scrambled to his feet hastily retrieving the weapon and shakily handing it to the human.

“Wha-what is that?!”

“ ** _BETRAYED!!_** ”The horribly distorted shriek was enough of an answer.

The animator’s eyes found something he’d missed before, as the monster began moving faster, reaching the bottom of the stairs.

_The reel.How?!_

Within a heartbeat, the man spun around and grabbed the devil, sprinting to the walkway separating the two halves of the room.Making it the the stairs on the other side, he place the toon back on his feet.

“Go.Hide.”

“But Henry-“

“Now.”

Turning back to the creature now on the opposite side of the bridge, he glanced back to make sure the demon had listened to see him watching from behind the return chute on the right side of the doorway.He quickly returned his attention back to the monster as it crouched, letting out a bloodcurdling scream.

Bracing for a rush, he was surprised when the creature lunged over the bridge and collided straight into him.A sickening crunch was loud in his ears as his back met the steps.A cool tingling washed over him, he felt... wet?Cold.All he could move were his eyes as he strained to find the defenseless toon.

The last thing he saw as darkness overtook his view was a bright light, screams filling the air, echoing as he drifted off.


	15. Same Song, Different Dance

Part 15

“Alright, Joey.I’m here.Let’s see if we can find what you wanted me to see.”

 

* * *

 

 

Heaving for air as he staggered away from the door he’d successfully barricaded, he could hear frustrated banging coming from the horrifying creature on the other side.He stumbled backwards, watching the sturdy board blocking it, afraid it might still give out.Pressing his back against the wall, he listened as the banging stopped, and watched the veins of ink enshrouding the door disappear.

If that thing can conjure itself out of thin air, why in the hell do wooden boards stop it?

He caught his breath before he pushed himself back up and looked to the door beside him. It was yet another small room with puddles of ink and oversized pipes protruding from the walls.It was like this place was designed to be a maze.This was not the quaint animation studio Henry Stein had worked at 30 years ago.Not anymore, at least.

_Sammy..._

His chest hurt from the stress, but that paled in comparison to the throbbing ache in his head from the possessed music director knocking him out.

He’d always known Joey to be an eccentric man, but this... this was like some kind of nightmare.A wave of guilt washed over him. _Would it have been different if I hadn’t left?_ He rubbed his temples, breathing slowly as he collected himself.

Gathering the strength to continue, he opened the door leading to a new hallway.His heart jumped to his throat as a dented can of bacon soup greeted him by rolling across the floor.

“Hello?Someone there?”

Silence.

Swallowing his nerves, he pressed, “I know you’re in here, come out and show yourself.”

 

 

“Boris?”

 

* * *

 

“... I’m sorry.”

Alice turned away from him, closing her eyes from a brief moment while Tom rested his good arm on her shoulder, before they abandoned the man they’d trapped in a makeshift jail cell and ran from their safe house.

Another tremor shook the room, dust fluttering all over.The animator hastily retrieved the gadget the woman had given him a couple of days ago.He’d since examined the many messages inside the ‘cell’-

_‘Take the spoon!’_

_‘Don’t go through the door!’_

_‘What door?’_

_‘So many questions.’_

_‘Follow me.’_

_‘ITS INSIDE THE VAULT!”_

-and knew exactly how to escape.The spoon was a lever, opening a hidden passage - a small room with a toilet.There was a pipe hidden in it that he could use to break the boards blocking his ‘cell’ from the rest of the safe house.

After breaking out of the small prison, he gave the room one last look over with the seeing tool.Only one message he hadn’t seen before was beside the doorway, blocked by his limited view from the ‘cell’.

‘He needs you.’

_He?Joey?_

A wail from outside the door sent shivers down his spine as he hurried out of the room and into an unfinished, rough underground tunnel.

 

* * *

 

**_Shk_ **

 

The crazed music director froze, collapsing to the ground as the the person behind him pulled the hatchet from his head.

_Tom?_

The toonish, wolf-like man stood before him,offering the handle of the weapon to help the human to his feet.

“That was close.” The familiar voice of the much kinder Alice Angel was reassuring, “You’re lucky we were in the neighborhood!”

The cavernous harbor shook, reminding them all it was not yet time to relax.

“Was that ‘him’?” The animator looked around apprehensively, as though the Ink Demon would appear at any second.

“I don’t think so...” Alice glanced around, “the Searchers and the Lost Ones built this place,” her eyes fell on the ‘cabin’ in the center of the row of structures, “Sammy must have been keeping them at bay, now that he’s gone...”

Ink puddles started appearing all around them, “Looks like we’re in for a fight...” she unsheathed her sword, “Get ready!”

Searchers pulled themselves up with their arms while the Lost Ones had the advantage of full human stature, attacking the trio from all sides.

Henry could barely see as he swung the hatchet at the malicious hands grabbing at him.More kept appearing, they were everywhere.At least two dozen of the creatures were swarming them, the animator had lost sight of his companions.He could only hear Alice occasionally yelling at their assailants.They became further outnumbered, hands tearing at his clothes, his skin, his hair.Hitting, scratching, pulling - they were drowning him.

“ **HENRY!** ”

Alice’s voice was muffled by the bodies pressing him into the inky darkness.The silence was replaced by screams and cries and moans.Too many voices to count, his head was splitting under the pressure.He tried to cup his ears with his hands but he couldn’t articulate his arms, like his body was giving way to the ink.

_No.NO._

He was fighting, but he was losing.  

  ' _Where am I?'_

_' You promised.'_

_' Help me!'_

_' You LIED.'_

He was losing his strength, his ability to think... he was losing himself.The voices started to blend together.Different, but the same.  His thoughts were fragmented and fleeting.  There was pain, but nowhere specific, just... everywhere.  It would be so easy to just...

 

_A name._

_Who’s name?_

_Is that..._

_My name?_

 

“H e n r y.”

 

_That voice..._

 

It was familiar.It stood out from the others, just barely loud enough to hear.

 

_Henry..._

 

“H e n r y !”

 

_Henry._

 

“H e n r y . . .”

 

_Bendy?_

 

Like a tidal wave, memories flooded back to the man.A completely overwhelming surge of pure emotions - exuberance, terror, hopefulness, fury, love, dismay - pulled him back together.His eyes opened, he was in the ink.Again.

This was all happening _again._

  “Bendy!”  The ink tried desperately to stop him, pull him back into the rest of the voices, but it was easier this time; he knew what he had to do, “Bendy, where are you?!”

 

“H e n r y .”

 

It was faint.The ink seemed to be aware of the familiarity as well, and was fighting as much as he was.

Closing his eyes, he focused on keeping himself together as the ink grew more violent.He focused on Bendy.He was in there, he just needed to find him.

Like an answer to a prayer, he could see him.A fleck of white in the infinite darkness.

“Bendy, I need you.I need you to trust me.”The voices were shrieking now, all of them, “We can fix this.”

The pale shape shifted, just a flinch, but it was enough.

“Bendy,” He lifted his arms, eyes still closed, “I’m here.”

Every inch of him suddenly felt like it was ripped apart and put back together again.The voices were distraught until they were suddenly gone as Henry was thrown forward onto a hard surface.

The ground.Real ground.In front of the Bendy shrine back at the harbor.

Gasping for breath, he fought to push off the ink as it dissipated.Quick to his feet, he could see Allison and Tom still struggling with several Lost Ones by the ‘buildings’, but before he could move to assist them, the entire cavern trembled again.The Lost Ones stopped, looking around confusedly until thick, black ink began oozing from the structures.Not just the structures, everywhere, inky veins shot across the river, spreading rapidly across the room.Exploding on contact, none of the creatures could escape the tendrils.

Allison and Tom watched in equal parts frustration and fear as the Ink Demon himself crept out of the inky river at the bay of the harbor.He approached them as they lifted their weapons, but Henry was quick enough to get between both parties, facing the Demon.

“Henry?! What are you-“

“Bendy, stop!Listen to me!”Tom pulled Allison a few steps back while the animator distracted the monster.

“You don’t have to do this anymore!”It stopped.

“You’re not alone, remember?”Tom motioned silently to the angel that they should make their break for the exit, whom reluctantly obliged, but not without one last glance over her shoulder.Henry was talking like the Ink Demon was... his ally?

“What is he talking about?” She whispered to her friend, who only glared back at the human before shaking his head as they made their way to the hallway behind Sammy’s cabin.

“I’m here,” the animator stretched his arms out, holding steady, “I remember.”

Wailing loudly, the beast grabbed his own head.The room shook again, as the veins surged, collapsing several parts of the buildings around them.The demon fell forward, hunched over, giving the human an opportunity to step closer, lowering his arms somewhat.

“I’m here.” He repeated.

The creature screamed at him, but he did not falter.He took another step, “I know you’re in there.”

A violent shudder wracked the Demon’s body as he collapsed onto his knees.He was changing, but not in the right way.Disproportionately large claws replaced his hands, horns disfiguring more as they extended.

“He can’t hurt you anymore.”

The transformation stagnated as he wailed again, the cave shaking enough to shake free rocks and dirt from the ceiling above them, collapsing more of the village.Henry flinched at the crashes, hurting the last few steps in succession, finally reaching the demon, and placed one hand on his face, the other on his shoulder, “I won’t let him hurt you anymore.”

The wailing turned into sobbing, one last tremor rippling through the harbor, dropping the human to his knees.

The Demon wept as waves of ink melted slowly off his body, the veins fading from the room around them.Henry maintained his grip as the inky being shrunk before him.Soon, the voice was no longer distorted by a haunting chorus or screams, and soon, a familiar face was visible amidst the pool of ink.

The off-model toon with a broken eye was crying before him.He somehow found the strength to lunge forward and embrace the old animator.

“I-I-I thought-“ he was gasping between the sobs, “I thought you were-“

The man hushed softly, holding the now much smaller demon tightly, “I know. I...I know.”

———

Once he’d calmed down, the two of them sat in silence for a while.Facing what was left of the dock, they watched the inky river flow.

The animator reached his arm over his shoulder and felt the place across his back the gash had been before everything...It was completely healed, or rather, hadn’t happened yet.He took a deep breath, ending with a sigh.

“That reel... turns back time?”

Both remained fixated on the river in another moment of silence.

“Joey Drew...”

Caught off guard, Henry finally broke his gaze and turned to the demon, unsure of where this was going.He was always unsure of Bendy, really.His gaze remained on the flow of ink.

“It always happens.”

His voice was calm, but it was heavy.This was very hard for him to talk about.

“Again and again.If I kill you, you come back,” his voice was steady but his hands clenched, “if you kill me, we start over.”

The human could only stare in stunned silence.

This had happened before?

“I can... feel him.”He finally dropped his gaze to his fists, “he’s angry.”A smile started to creep onto his face, unnatural and pained, “He’s going to stop us.”

Why?

He’d had his suspicions, that maybe... maybe Joey had done all of this... on purpose, but-

_Is he really... making them all relive this?_

_Us.He’s making us relive this._

“How many times-“

The demon started chuckling, quietly at first, but it built into full on laughter.He cupped the far side of his face as tears welled up and began streaming down his face.He looked to the human.

“I’ve killed you hundreds of times, Henry- thousands, even!”

An aching sadness filled his chest, his heady fuzzy with confusion.They’ve been forced to do this all, over and over and over and over...

_But they know?_

A piercing pain shot through his neck to the backs of his eyes as the room around him disappeared, memories flashing before him; talking to Joey in his apartment, writing in golden ink on the walls, playing the reel. 

In a heartbeat, they were gone again, his head was in his hands, aching, and he could hear Bendy laughing again.  The devil had since thrown himself backwards and was lying on his back, clutching his head in his hands.

“Bendy.”

The laughter continued.

“Bendy.”

Conceding to the fact the toon couldn’t hear him, he shifted onto his knees and placed his hand on top of the devil’s own.

Like a switch was flipped, he stopped.He allowed the animator to move his hand off of half his face, but he was staring straight ahead at the ceiling, frowning, tears still staining his face.

“Bendy.”

The golden pupil trained on him.

“Has this... have we ever done _this_ before?”

He was answered only with silence.Then, finally, a blink.

“He’ll stop us.” The demon’s voice was barely audible.

A scowl intensified the humans features, casting long shadows down his face.He was possessed by a deep-seeded rage.Anger at Joey, frustration with himself, resentment of the things he knew he’d helped create - tears formed in the corners of his eyes.He let this go on for so long.He tried to break free, he left warning after warning for himself, and yet...

He took a deep breath, bringing himself back to the present.

“Not if we stop him first.”

The demon kept his focus on the human.

“I will paint the truth on every wall until I remember.I’m not going to stop trying.”He leaned forward and gently gripped the devil’s shoulder.

“I’m not gunna stop coming back for you.”

Fresh tears welled in the toon’s eyes, he failed to stop them as he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, placing his free hand back on his face.He exhaled as he rocked up into a sitting position beside the aged man, moving his hands to hold his chest.

“How...” he looked to the animator, “how can we stop him?”

A lightheaded feeling came on, the most obvious answer was the one he didn’t want to give.Even after everything, it was a strange, unwelcome thought... to think of actually killing Joey.Especially considering that wouldn’t necessarily help any of the souls trapped in this redundant hell.

“Trial and error, I guess.”He sat back on his hands, “If I can get to him, and remember, maybe he would...”

The apprehension on the demon’s face was enough to convince him that Bendy somehow knew that wouldn’t work.

“I can hope, right?”

  They both chuckled.The question playing at Henry’s mind was more along the lines of _how in the hell am I going to get to Joey?_ But for right now, he knew it probably wouldn’t hurt to get as much backup as possible.If he could break the cycle for Bendy, maybe he could get to everyone else, too.


	16. Radio Silence

Using memory as a guide, the demon and the animator made their way back towards the upper levels, making much better time.They traveled mostly in silence, both lost in thought.

He could easily remember, now, the last time.He could remember finding the hidden message (that he’d apparently left for himself) that guided him to meeting, to saving, Bendy.

_Bendy._

He remembered the literal meltdowns, the screaming, the fear.The laughter, the smiles, the comfort. His own nightmares he now feared were foreshadowing to the outcome of their ‘story’.He remembered the demon commanding forth the souls of those trapped in the ink...his life blood.

He’s not human.Not at all.

The strange realization had come to him shortly before being killed and... reset.The thought still sent chills up the back of his neck.He thought he was finally starting to understand this place.But clearly, he wasn’t.

He watched the back of the toon’s head as he walked a step or two in front of the old animator.

Even despite the truth uprooting everything he thought he knew, there was a lingering numbness to it all.Besides the radiating ache in his head as he strained to recover any memories of the other repetitions, the rest of his body felt numb.He was on autopilot.Intrusive thoughts only made it harder, of course, to remember.

_How long have I been stuck here?_

_Am I still living?_

_Am I the same as them?_

_What do I do now?_

It was like trying to listen to someone talk through white noise.No matter how distressing the message, it was dulled by the static.

“Hey....Henry?”

He tensed at the surprising break from silence, as he practically fell back into his body.He hadn’t realized how far he’d drifted until he noticed they’d reached Bendyland.

Finding himself a touch relieved for a distraction from his own convoluted thoughts, he turned to look at the devil as a silent cue to continue as they walked.

Bendy looked away, anxious at the idea of actually speaking his mind.

The older man stopped to give the toon his full attention, ironically only encouraged the inky being’s nerves as he began fumbling with his hands.

“I-well, I mean-If I...” The human watched quietly, letting the toon find the words he needed.He took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment before finally meeting the gaze of the animator.

“Why... did you leave?” He asked, meeting Henry’s eyes.

They stopped.Uncertainty tied his tongue.There were... several contributing factors.He wasn’t sure how to explain it, even though he would have plenty of time, it seemed.

“It’s... complicated.”

The demon cast his eyes to the ground, clearly disappointed by the answer.The animator felt guilt begin to play at his thoughts, but a hint of...discretion was needed, sometimes.

“Was it... did I-“

“No.” Henry cut him off, “No,” he rubbed his temples with one hand, _he certainly is like a real child, though_ , “it had nothing to do with you.Any of you.I didn’t...,” his voice trailed off as he looked up towards the balcony they had been making their way towards, memories of old arguments replacing the more recent ones.

“I didn’t want to.”

His chest felt tight as memories of the war he’d been drafted into started infiltrating the others.His mouth felt dry, and he could feel his mind drifting again, but he was pulled back down by a hand, gently gripping his arm.Bendy was standing closer, looking to the man with concern.

“I’m sorry.”

Resting his hand on the demon’s, they shared sympathetic smiles before they continued. 

_I trust him._

_...but why do I have to keep telling myself that?_

They reached the stairs when something occurred to the toon.

“Wait, hold on.” He dashed back into the warehouse, a clear goal in mind.One Henry would’ve liked to be privy to, but he digressed - the devil was already coming back into view.

“Okay, captain, we’re all clear.”The toon gave an enthusiastic thumbs up, receiving a raised a brow in response. _Its like he just, changed the channel._ The demon happily passed the human and headed up the stairs.Shaking his head, he followed.

————

It all felt so natural.Which isn’t something he usually felt down here.He aimlessly felt the back of his shoulder again.He sill didn’t know much about any sort of black magic or rituals, but the realization of the accidental one he performed lingered behind the other memories. 

_What did I really do?_

He’d been able to stay more focused on the present since their last conversation, if you could call their brief exchange that.They’d climbed through the venting system again, but exited in a different room.They’d only had the option to follow a narrow hallway to staircase leading to yet another unfamiliar level.More office spaces, most of the rooms locked, eerie, dim lighting illuminating everything just enough to exaggerate its sepia glow.Occasional name plates he didn’t recognize, and the ever so faint settling of the building.Even used to this place, he wasn’t used to it.However familiar he got with it, it was somehow always new in its deceptions.

He was hoping they would run into Allison and Tom, since they were better aquatinted with this place, but he supposed luck wasn’t on their side under these circumstances.

Knowing now that anything could take them by surprise like last time, he was more guarded than before.It was hard to stay on edge, though, when your body reminds you how exhausted it is.An ache radiated through his joints, his eyes stung from the dust.This is getting to be-

“Hey, uh, Henry?”

“Hmm?”The toon was looking at him with the same concern as before, like he was broadcasting his thoughts out loud.

“D’ya wanna, take a break or somethin’?”

He abruptly realized he’d stopped walking a few minutes ago, and was standing there, dozing, like an actual old man.

“I think that’d be a good idea.” He sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck.

The devil smiled, moving ahead to test the handle of a closed door.Relieved when the door let out a shrill creak as he opened it, the toon dipped his torso in first, to check it out, before carefully walking into the room as the animator caught up.

Sure enough, the room was safe (for now), and there weren’t even any holes in the wall.A desk with a chair in the far left corner had a candle lit on it, but not much else besides a blank piece of paper.A filing drawer, rusted and dented, sat across from the desk, and the human couldn’t help but head towards it as he entered the small room. 

Careful not to cut himself, he shuffled through the loud cabinets, finding only ink stained documents of purchases and hirings. 

_That Cohen guy has my sympathies._

A loud thunk drew his attention to the demon behind him, who’d clumsily placed a hatchet on the desk.

“Sorry.” He smiled abashedly.

Turning back to the cabinets, he resealed the drawers and stepped back towards the toon, “And what, pray tell, are you going to be doing while I’m resting?”

“Keepin’ watch, of course!” He bragged, saluting the human.

“Mhmm.” _Doubtful._

“Devil’s honor.” He touched his thumb to the opposite finger, giving a solemn nod.

Taking both of his shoulders, the animator turned him around, making sure his fingers on the hand behind his back weren’t crossed.

“Alright.”

“Sheesh, Henry, if you wanted me to do a turn for ya, ya coulda’ just asked.”He motioned as if to blow a kiss over his shoulder, only getting a snide look in response.

As the demon waited in front of the door, Henry move the chair to the side of the desk, giving himself more room to lay down beside the far wall of the room.Taking a deep breath, he tried to relax somewhat, before looking to the toon watching him from a few feet away. 

“Be careful.If you hear anything, wake me, okay?”

“Okay.Henry?”

He raised both brows as the toon reached over his shoulder as he made his way back to the human, “You should probably use this, so ya don’t hurt yer neck.”He retrieved a medium sized Boris plus, the very same Henry had retrieved for him on their first trip through Bendyland.He chuckled as he accepted the toy, placing it carefully under his head.

“Thank you.”

Bendy’s grey blush was faint across his face as he smiled before quickly turning around and slipping back out of the room.

The dull ache in his head came to the forefront of his attention as he closed his eyes.It was hard to think by this point, he was so tired.All he could manage to conjure was a prayer.A prayer that he would wake up and Bendy would still be outside that door.A prayer things would stay as okay as they could until he woke up.A prayer he _would_ wake up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com


	17. Boredom Is As Boredom Does

Stretching his arms above his head, Bendy leaned back against the hallway wall.With the hum of the stirring building resonating through him, he could feel his mind relaxing.Henry said it had been about a week since they... remembered.So far, he still didn’t have a clear idea of what the plan was, but right now, he knew they were “looking for allies”.The number of searchers they’d encountered could be counted on one hand, even a toon’s hand, and based on the way Henry took them out, he figured they... _didn’t make the cut._

Snickering, he slid down the wall until he was sitting on the ground, and began examining his off-model boots.They were smaller than the ones of the cartoon he was based on, more ‘realistic’, kinda.A few taps together proved they were fairly quiet, probably based on rubber boots. 

_Based on._

_What am I?_

The question had plagued him since day one.He wasn’t really Bendy, even if he had memories of his friends and their adventures together, even if he looked (sorta) like him, even if Henry and Joey-

_Joey._

Darkness overtook his vision as he plunged backwards, and without time to scream, he hit different wooden floorboards.Ink flooded over him, sticking, pinning, weighing him down, he scrambled to get his feet underneath him, but he didn’t quite have feet, no.Everything was so overwhelming.It was so cold. It was so loud.Gasps and whispers filled his head before any proper thought could, shuffling of feet and a loud ‘thud’, like something large had fallen over, echoed around him.Then, pain.The kind of pain that strangles you, that pierces to the bone.Every inch of his body.Only pain.

_No._

_No._

_   **Ñͭ̎̀҉̤̘͎͎̞̘̕O̼̥̗̺̠̱̫̙͙ͭ̍̄͗̂̆.** _

What happened?Where-where...  His eyes shot open as he jolted, slamming his head against the wall behind him.Gasping for breath he didn’t need, the toon pulled his legs in.

Recognition eased the tension in his shoulders as he found himself in the hallway outside of the office Henry was resting in.

_Huh.Musta been one helluva nightmare._

That had been happening more than he cared to admit.  His human companion didn’t know about them, period, but his thoughts, his memories...they were so fragmented, and sometimes fleeting, and sometimes....bad - it was difficult to ever think of what to say.To focus long enough to say it.If he even remembered what had happened.

_Why am I so....broken?_

He lifted his left hand up slowly, letting it gravitate to the crack along the left side of his face.

_Monster._

_Wrong._

_Mistake._

_Abomination._

A twist, deep in the very core of his being, wound so tightly he thought he might burst, twisted just a little bit more.A bead of ink dripped onto his other hand, clenched firmly into a fist, reminding him to keep his composure.

_Smile._

More drops.Were they tears?Is it really crying if it’s ink?

Lurching forward, he wretched.More ink.It stained the floor, running into the warped wood grain of the floor boards.It faded quickly.

_Stop it._

He curled backwards, back against the wall, clutching his legs to his chest.

**_Smile._ **

He listened to his breathing - in and out...in and out.

_Like Henry._

He listened to the building.It shouldn’t feel like home, but in some way more warped than the floorboards beneath him, it did.

He’ll wake up soon.

—————

 

Gasping, he shot up like a bullet.Faint strings of the nightmare still lingering in his vision, he furiously rubbed his eyes to make sure it was only that; a nightmare.Much to his relief, it was.

_God, happy to wake up here?_

Stretching his arms above his head, a yawn made Henry’s eyes water.He rolled back down, staring at the decrepit ceiling, contemplating how long he could get away with doing nothing.So much time, so little progress.  It had been nearly two months and they couldn’t track down Allison and Tom, and he couldn’t get any useful information out of Bendy - he either didn’t know, couldn’t remember, or didn’t want to.

His body urged him to rest, but his mind was already growing impatient.He closed his eyes for a few more peaceful minutes before he sighed and began pushing himself back up, getting to his feet this time.One more stretch and he could feel every joint and muscle, taut and sore, until he relaxed and eased their pain somewhat.

Knocking first, the animator slowly opened the door to peak out into the hall, “Coast all clear?”

Already on his feet and smiling, the toon nodded his confirmation.The human withdrew himself back into the room, opening the door for the demon to follow him.

“I worked a little more on the map, but I’m still not sure of the proper way to get down to administration.”He sat down in the creaky chair of the desk right beside the door, pulling together a few of the office papers he’d drawn on the blank side of, “I think the stairwell from the storage warehouse collapsed, behind that door that’s all boarded up?”He pointed to a specific section of the level containing parts of Bendyland.The devil nodded as he looked over the papers.

“I think,” he leaned back, careful not to strain the fragile chair, “I think I should go up to level P and look around there,” the devil switched his attention to the man, “I’ll keep an eye out for any parts that could help us fix the lift, if that’s an option, and for...anyone.”

“Aw, c’mon, Henry, you’re not making me wait here again, are ya?”Bendy crossed his arms indignantly, frustrated by their increasing separations.

“I know it’s not...ideal, but -“ he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk, “I think we need to stay unexpected.If...we can.” _There’s no need to bring him up right now._

Sighing, the toon was very obviously fighting the urge to argue.

“...fine.”

There was more than just defeat in his tone, enticing the human to ask, but he promptly reconsidered.Probably nightmares...Of course, he had no room to criticize him for holding things back.

“I’ll be back soon,”Standing, the animator reached for the hatchet leaning against the wall beside the desk, “Okay?”

Another very begrudging “Fine.” was mumbled by the devil.Despite his unwillingness to look at the aged man, Henry smiled and placed his hand between the devil’s horns, “I will be as fast as I can.”

“Yeah, well, yer slow anyway, so...”

Rolling his eyes, Henry moved around the demon and made his exit, leaving the door cracked open, and headed back out into the labyrinthine studio.

 

* * *

 

Leaning up against the ink stained table, he let out a brisk sigh.

_Nothing._

Another trip proving to be fruitless - he could feel the redundancy draining him.  For weeks now, it'd been more of the same.  He couldn’t help but think about Joey, the idea that he controls the events and people here, how could he stop him from inside his own story?He wouldn't find Allison and Tom unless Joey wanted him to, and even then, what would that mean?

Taking another, deeper breath, he stood back up.He couldn’t say it was entirely fruitless, he’d found a few good gears and another rope.A real one, not an ink one. _Is anything here real?_ He rubbed his eyes to clear the questions from his head again.He should be getting back downstairs, it had to have been several hours by now, Bendy was probably bored, maybe even worried.

He walked back out into the main hall of the lobby area, heading for the stairwell.Two, discolored sheets of glass on either side allowed him to look into the rooms he’d already explored, keeping his gaze on the floor in front of him, he purposefully ignored the phrases scrolled across the walls around him.

_This is your fault._

_You should have stopped him._

_How could you?_

_Liar!_

The longer he remembered, the more responsible he felt.Guilt weighed heavily on his shoulders as he tried desperately to drown out the thoughts with plans.He could fix this.I will fix this.But what would it take?

The sound of sloshing ink claimed prominence in his mind as he approached the bottom of the stairs, a searcher appearing in behind him, pushing him the rest of the way down.

He hit the floor hard, scattering his collection of tools away from him, just as he heard more ink come to life down the hall he was now lying breathless in.

_Two searchers?!_

He started pulling himself up when his ankle gave way as he tried to put weight on it.

_Damn it!_

Another searcher dropped from a leaking pipe closer than the other two, who were all converging on him.His heartbeat was loud in his ears as he grabbed the closest thing to him, a broken pipe, lashing back at the inky creatures striking out at him.Discouraging only one, the other two landed harsh blows. _Other three?!_ There were more.

Electric pain shot through his entire body, the enemy he’d caught recovering with another attack.Vision blurred by the ink splattered across his face, he gasped as another hit landed.

Head throbbing, he couldn’t think.He swung out desperately, feeling the pipe slash through one of the searchers.But he could hear something...footsteps?

“Hyah!”

A familiar voice rang out as a low moan escaped one of the inky creatures.Scuffling and grunts pursued.He pulled his hand to his face, rubbing the ink away to the best of his ability.Hope welled in his chest as he saw the two people he’d been looking for since their last encounter.Allison and Tom fought off a slow wave of the possessed souls, one by one until it was only the three of them left in the hall.

In the strife, Henry had made his way to the closest wall, now using it to pull himself up, his ankle seemingly stronger now.He must’ve just sprained it.

“Allison, Tom, I-“

Swinger her blade away from the last searcher, she pointed it directly at him.Their expressions stayed the same, angry and combative.

“...Henry.”

Tom picked up his hatchet, making sure he remained disarmed, aside from the pipe.They remained locked in a silent standoff for a couple of minutes, before Allison spoke again.

“You’re an ally of the Ink Demon.”She narrowed her eyes, “We saw you talk to it.Command it, even.”

“It’s not-“

“I thought you...I thought you were different.” A flicker of sadness crossed her face as she lowered her blade.

“I can explain, if you’ll listen.”

Drawing it back up, her scowl intensified, “Why should we believe you?”

“Why would I lie?”

Annoyed, she stepped forward.

“You would if you worked- if you _controlled_ the Demon.”

Another silence fed the tension.

“I won’t lie to you.”He looked to Tom, who seemed far less willing to listen as his clenched hands tightened further around his weapons.He looked back to Allison as he took a deep breath.

“He is my ally, but it’s-“ Allison took a step back, alarm mixing with the resentment, “it’s different now.

“What are you-“

“He’s Bendy now.”

Allison scoffed as she took a few more steps back.She was clearly conflicted, but he could tell he could get to her.

“If we work together, we can all-“

Tom had heard enough.He stepped in front of his companion, aggressively raising his pipe and Henry’s hatchet.

“Tom, wait!” Allison's cry did nothing to deter her friend.

He lunged.Deja vu.

Pushing away from the wall, he barely dodged the toon.  _Is this Joey or Tom?_   Rushing up the stairs, he may have gained the higher ground, but his unwillingness to strike the man was his disadvantage.  

“Tom, stop!”Allison chased the two, up the stairs, but Tom was faster than them both, swinging the hatchet towards the animator’s arm, nicking his sleeve and cutting his right arm.  Searing pain consumed it, forcing him to take the pipe with his left hand.  _This is not good._

“ _Tom!_ ”  They were so close now, the animator couldn't even see Allison over the other's shoulders

“You don’t have to do this, Tom,” parrying Tom’s pipe with his own, they locked eyes, “I want to help you.”  _Please._

In one swift movement, he hooked the hatchet on the human’s pipe, pulling it from his hands.His breath caught in his throat as Tom lifted his pipe a little higher, this is not what he had planned.  But he didn't swing.  A heartbeat of hesitation proved enough as Allison grabbed her companion's mechanical arm.

“Tom, that's _enough_.”Clenching his jaw, the Boris lookalike stole a glance at the angel.  Her glare speaking louder than her words.  Lowering his weapons he stepped back, ears flat against his head.Not killing Henry didn’t mean he wanted to hear him out.Regardless, Allison looked back to the animator.

 

“Alright.Explain.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com  
> “Abomination” is a reference to the wonderful comic by halfusek.tumblr.com


	18. The Head on my Shoulders

“How do we know this isn’t a trap?”

Without speaking, the animator cocked his brow, looking down to the wound he was holding on his right arm.Allison followed his gaze, crossing her arms, “Fair enough.”

“I was actually on my way back to him,” looking back to her, he straightened up, wincing slightly, “he’s on a level between 14 and S, just more offices, mostly.”

“The...Ink Demon.”Allison looked uncomfortable, her and her partner exchanging a suspicious glance.

“Bendy.”Henry corrected.

“And how do you know _you_ can trust him?”Her attention fell from him up the scattered gears and wrench behind them, “What are you planning?”

“I...think I made a blood pact with him.”

“You what?!” the angel looked at the animator, astonished, Tom growling beside her.

“It’s a long story.Right now, I’m trying to see if we can fix the lift.”

Sighing, Allison shook her head, “Well, I was right about you being different...”

Tom placed a hand on her shoulder, pleading with his eyes for her to change her mind.

“He’s got a point... We haven’t been bothered by ‘him’ for weeks.Maybe-“ he shook his head.It was going to take a lot to convince him.

“Does the name Joey Drew ring any bells?”

Tom looked to him, dread contorting his face, while Allison looked back to him with curiosity.

“The man who wrote the book?”

The animator received a warning glare from Tom.He doesn’t want Allison to know the truth.Given that he had no idea what it could do to her, that made sense.Given that Joey could be controlling him-

“Yeah, that one.”Nodding to the level behind the duo, they slowly began moving back down to the hallway, “We’re trying to find out more about getting out of here.We think he can help us.”

Reaching for a gear, Allison helped him collect the tools.Her attention was pointed, it was going to difficult leaving out so much around her, especially while trying to convince Tom of the importance of their mission.It didn’t help that he was clueless as to how much the man knew himself.

What if they’re tricking me and they don’t even know it?

“You think he’s alive?”

He stared at the rope in his hands, the sudden urge to cry overwhelming him.

“Yeah.”

A new silence filled the hall, Henry trying to collect himself, Allison trying to collect her thoughts and questions.There was a lot to process, a lot still in question, and the delayed relief of finding the duo only fueled his emotionality.

Opening her mouth to speak as she picked up the final gear, a laugh cut her off.

“This is all such a mess.”She turned to see a tired smile on the old man.His eyes were distant, he closed them as he swallowed hard, preventing himself from letting any tears escape.His mind was somewhere else, and there was no way the other two could comprehend the knowledge he had of this place.

  Bringing his thoughts back to the moment, he finally met Allison’s worried eyes.Not uncertain, just worried. 

“It’s good to see you both.”

It was her turn to laugh, “Yeah, when we’re not trying to kill you?”

Tom watched them both, averting his eyes as the other two shared a smile.He still didn’t trust Henry, he knew that, but he trusted Allison and that would have to be enough for now.

She returned the gears and wrench to the older animator, looking apologetically at the gash on his arm.She reached down and tore the rim of her skirt as both men watched her.

“May I?”

He nodded, smiling gratefully as she reached to tie the cloth around his arm.

As she finished, she stood back, looking between her two companions.

“We should keep moving.”She focused on Henry, “Lead the way.”

 

——————————

 

“So you performed the ritual by yourself?”

“At the time, I didn’t really know that’s what I was doing.”He’d left out any mention of the loop, opting to apply the same facts to their second attempt.The ritual happening at the harbor using items from the Lost Ones’ homes, shortly after Allison and Tom had escaped.She seemed to believe it, Tom barely seemed to be listening at all, “But it worked, so I guess I can’t complain.”

“And now, he’s...a perfect Bendy?” The angel was watching him, a hint of excitement in her voice.If he could fix even the Ink Demon, maybe he could help her...maybe he could even restore Tom’s voice.

“Not exactly.”

Or not.

“He’s...” looking at his hand, the animator tried to figure out the best way to explain it, “somewhere in between.”A flash of uncertainty crossed Allison’s eyes as Henry met them.

“Only physically,”He hurriedly corrected himself, “personality-wise, he’s Bendy.” He chuckled as her shoulders relaxed slightly, continuing to defuse her worry, “He hides behind me when searchers show up.”

After smiling back at him, she looked to Tom, giving him an encouraging nod.He rolled his eyes.

They were almost back to the office, but Henry didn’t want to surprise the little devil, so he slowed to a stop at the end of the hallway.He’d spent somewhere in the neighborhood of an hour or two explaining everything to the duo, so they, well, Allison would probably understand.He’d also left out anything about the episodes.If they felt he was a threat in any way, he knew that all of this would be for nothing.He would rather talk to them about it after they’d met him.

They both looked to him, the angel suddenly looking anxious again.

“Is this...”

Nodding, he could feel Tom’s glare burning into him, “I don’t wanna sneak up on him, would you mind to wait here?”

After exchanging a glance with her partner, she looked back to the human, “Alright.”

One last reassuring smile and he started down the hall.A flood of anxious thoughts filled his mind in the short distance.

_What if this is a trap?What if they hurt him?What if he hurts them?What if he’s not here?_

The door was still cracked open, and as he rested his hand on the knob, his breathing quickened.Waiting another few seconds, he heard something. _Humming_.It stopped.

“Henry?”

The nerves melted as he softly pushed the door open, “Hey.”

Hopping up off the floor, the demon rushed to the man for an embrace.This didn’t last long as he moved back with a mild scowl on his face.

“You said you were gunna be fast!”

“I know, I know.”

“You were gone all day!”

“Hasn’t been that long has it?”

Scowling further, the animator noticed the papers on the floor behind the toon.

“Were you drawing again?”

Quickly forgoing his anger, he looked back at the cluster of pages.

“Oh! Yeah!”Taking the human’s hand, he led him over to the drawings.Swiftly dropping to his knees, he gathered up the loose papers while the animator knelt down, much more carefully, beside him.

A grey tint blushed across the toon’s face as he handed the drawings off to the man smiling warmly at them.Much like the others, they were endearingly childlike, with an defining finesse about them.They included the usual subjects; Boris, Alice Angel, an on-model Bendy, and Henry himself, with a smattering of random things found around the studio, like the audio logs and the candles.Except, something was different...

“Bendy, what is that on Boris’ arm?” He also noticed the angel beside him was somehow skewed as well...

“Oh, that’s just his arm.”The demon’s response earning a concerned look from the human, flustering him, “I-I mean, you said you were lookin’ for your friends...but I was kinda...kinda forgettin’ what they look like...” the blush turned a deeper hue as he averted his eyes to the drawing.

He couldn’t respond before the room was submerged into a brilliant golden hue, pain grappling his head as the room gave way to a new one, a more natural one, but still discolored by the light.The only object in clear view was a drawing desk, with...storyboards?It all fell away, and dizzyingly fast, he was returned to the studios.

Gasping back into his body, he steadied himself with his hands, forfeiting the papers.

“Henry?!”

Still breathing heavily, he managed a response, “I-I’m okay, it’s-“

 _Joeys desk._ A bolt of pain.

“It’s okay.” Letting his breath catch up, he found his eyes deadlocked on the pages.

_I’m taking too long._

_Is that even possible?_

_Allison and Tom are waiting._

_Could he have...?_

“It was just a memory,” _focus_ , “about the studios.”He hadn’t noticed the devil’s hands bracing him until they lifted. _I can mull it over later._

Catching his breath, he cleared his throat, “Actually,” regaining his composure, he stood slowly, Bendy quick to steady him, just in case, the animator thanked him with a smile, “You might have brought me some good luck.”

Shifting seamlessly from intense to curious, the demon gave him a normal breadth of room, “What’re ya talkin’ about?”

“There are some people waiting outside I’d like for you to meet.”He could still feel the panic he’d pushed to the back of his mind, but the look of wonder on the toon’s face made his own excitement feel more sincere.But wonder soon faded back into worry.

“But, they-I....”

“I talked to them,” the man cupped the demon’s face with his hands, “no surprises this time.”

The toon contemplated the situation a moment more before nodding.Both turning to the door, the animator offered a hand to the devil, who took it anxiously as the made their way into the hall.Henry first, putting a his free hand up to get the attention of the inky people at the end of the hall.

Allison stood with her arms crossed, brows thoroughly furrowed, as if she were reconsidering their decision, while Tom held his pipe, intentionally obvious, they were turned to each other, when they both noticed the subtle creak of the door, and the human appearing from behind it.

Sharing one last glance, they walked slowly toward the halfway point.The angel uncrossed her arms, nerves getting the better of her as she let her hand brush the side of her sword anchored to her hip by her belt.Tom kept himself a half step ahead of her, defensively.

A look back inside the room from the man encouraged the toon to make his appearance, Tom and Allison freezing where they stood when he did.They were close enough to see how clearly off-model he was, as well as the claws on his right hand and considerable size difference.While he wasn’t nearly as imposing in this form, it was a stark reminder of the difference between the Demon and the cartoon.No veins followed him, no ink began filling the hallway, and as a matter of fact, he even seemed to be shaking.The question now would be whether it was nerves or guilt that was upsetting the toony devil.

Henry’s voice, soft and kind, brought the attention of each gaze to himself, but his was only on the toon.

“Bendy, this is Tom and Allison,” helooked to the other two now, encouraging them to come closer, “and this is Bendy.”

Shoulders relaxing slightly, Allison obliged, moving closer, and despite Tom’s huff of disapproval, he followed her closely.

“This is really ‘him’?” Her eyes were on the demon as she questioned the animator.

Shrinking behind his counterpart, Bendy’s eyes darted between the two strangers, and to Tom’s weapon.

“Yep.” The human turned to let Allison see the demon better, eliciting his curiosity to wane as anxiety took control.He was dripping enough for it to run onto his face, catching the attention of the angel.Her stature changing, she seemed sympathetic to the toon, making herself smaller before him.

“Hello, Henry calls me Allison.I guess that’s better than Alice.”She glanced back to the human, who was smiling gratefully to her, “That’s Tom.He can’t talk, but he’s not as mean as he acts sometimes.”

The toon leaned into her words, letting himself step closer.A faint smile emerging, the man saw a chance to ease the tension.

“I don’t think he’s been this quiet for a week.”

Allison straightened up to meet his eyes, “He can talk?”

The animator looked to the devil to answer, whom bashfully returned the look with a hint of excitement.

“Y-yeah, I can talk.”

Eyes wide, her doubts vanished as she suddenly moved forward to place her hands on his shoulders, bending to meet his eyes, “...incredible.”Tom rushed forward, stopping just behind her, his reservations perhaps more deeply rooted than before.

A fresh grey blush spread across the devil’s face as the angel brushed her thumb across the crack on the left side of it, neither noticing the panic of the man behind them.Henry stepped closer to the wolf, trying to calm him with a reassuring glance, but he only received a glare before the other refocused on Allison.

The angel stood back up, removing both hands from the toon as she looked more solemnly to Henry.

“What now?”

Placing his hand to his chin, the animator took a moment to consider his options.Something occurring to him, he carried his hand to the devil’s shoulder.

“I’d like to talk with Allison and Tom a little more,” frowning again, the devil knew where this was going, “but we’ll stay on this level.”

“Henry!”

“Just a little while, I promise.” The older man offered his pinky, hunching down to stay in the toon’s view when he averted his eyes. 

A smile toyed at the corners of Allison’s mouth as she saw the man thwart every attempt by the smaller demon to avert his gaze.He also foiled the toon’s attempt to stay mad as a giggle escaped him, finally taking the man’s pinky with his own, “Fine!” He wagged a gloved finger at the human as he took back his other hand, “But you promised, so ya actually have to do it this time.”

Bowing his head sarcastically, the animator evoked an eye roll from the toon before he headed back in the room, catching the angels eyes for a heartbeat before he was gone.He seemed almost...enamored of her.

As the door clicked softly beside him, Henry’s mood noticeably shifted back to the more tired, frustrated man from before.Tension came back in full force as the human turned and began walking to the other end of the hall, Allison and Tom following, almost reluctantly.

“There are...a few more things you need to know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com


	19. Error In Data

They’d traveled through four different halls in silence when the man in lead slowed to a stop, breaking the quiet with a deep breath.

The corridor felt narrow, compared to the others.The pressure of traversing this place alone was replaced with the pressure of things still unsaid.He didn’t know where to start, if they’d understand, what repercussions his words could have...like always, he was in the dark. 

“There’s a storage space up ahead.” speaking over his shoulder, he started walking again. 

Allison and Tom exchanged weary glances as they followed.

Three steps down at the end of the hallway led to a moderately sized room, void of electric light, candles were the only light source, creating an eerie atmosphere.Shelves lined the walls that led to two doorways, splitting the larger room into two smaller ones on the opposite side of the entryway.A few puddles of ink seeped onto the floor from an ominous pipe consuming the wall between the two doorways.Several pairs of eyes watched them, cut outs and plush toys sitting amongst rusted cans and outdated books.Unmarked folders littered the room, stained to the point of uselessness.

“I don’t know everything myself,” the human mumbled, making his way to the doorway on the right, “but I’ve learned a lot in the past few weeks.”

The angel stayed still while her partner followed the other further into the room, briefly checking the left room while the animator recovered whatever he was looking for.

Reappearing in the doorway with two folding chairs and a book, he made his way across the floor, back to the others.

“And I have to tell you the truth-“Setting up a chair beside Allison, he coughed briefly from the dust.She tested the chair with a push before sitting, while he moved towards Tom with the other, receiving a sharp glare from the wolf.With a roll of his eyes, he stopped halfway and set the chair there, “Bendy...” he crossed his arms, the book still in hand, “isn’t entirely stable.”

Allison narrowed her eyes, Tom took a step closer, baring his teeth slightly.Ignoring the latter, Henry centered himself between the two before slowly sitting on the ground with a sigh, “Have either of you listened to the audio logs around the studio?”

“The what?” Intrigued, the angel leaned forward.Tom watched him suspiciously, moving to set his pipe on the chair by his companion.

“Audio logs.They’re a little bigger than this book,” he gestured above the edges of the book as an example, “they’re like diary entries, from the former employees.”

Shaking her head, Allison looked to Tom with a spark of concern, “No, I don’t think we’ve ever seen one.”

“Alright.” _Thanks, Joey._ He set the book aside, bringing his hands together, “You’ve seen the pentagrams and symbols all over the place, right?”

A silent nod from the angel was a relief as he continued, placing one hand back on the book, “The law of...” _witchcraft?Satanic worship?_ “‘living’...dictates that you can’t make something from nothing.”

They watched him intently, aligning each word with the knowledge that they had.

“You can’t create a soul.” He rejoined his hands in his lap, “Every searcher, Lost One, and toon in this building...” the duo averting their eyes, Henry knew he didn’t need to finish that sentence.

“Is that...” bringing her hands up, the angel held her arms as her eyes met the human’s, “is that why you call me Allison?”

Swallowing his nerves, he glanced to Tom, who wasn’t looking at either of them.Instead, his glare was directed at the far wall, but he looked more somber than annoyed.

Answering the angel’s question with a nod, Allison’s gaze dropped to the floor again, “and Tom...”

The room was heavy.There wasn’t much he could say that would help them, or reassure them.He still didn’t know if there was any way he could help them get out of this place.

A low groan from the pipe behind him reminded them all that it didn’t matter right now.

“What about the Ink Demon...Bendy?” Tom looked to his partner with a look of frustration, but her focus stayed on the animator.

“He’s...” _an actual demon? A splintered soul? A figment of their imaginations to torcher them because this is hell?_ “Bendy.”

It was Allison’s turn to be frustrated, “You said you can’t create a soul.So how...”

Bending forward slightly, resting his elbows on his legs, the human raked his mind for an answer.

“I think he’s...made up of all the souls trapped in the ink.”His mind was reeling, it felt very different to say out loud than it did bouncing around his head.

Allison sat forward, trying to find his gaze, Tom focused on the book, a look of disgust that spoke volumes of how much he knew about Joey.

“But you said you...”

“I know.” He dragged his eyes back to the book beside him, “I think he’s bound to me now.” The tone of his voice did not distill confidence in the others. 

“And he’s unstable?”There was a hint of criticism in her voice, but her eyes shone with worry.

He was silent, averting his eyes from the book, but not meeting hers.Tom turned his gaze back to him, his resentment towards the man Allison had placed her hope in was reaching a boiling point.

“He won’t hurt you, he’s-

“Henry,” their eyes locking again, “it’s clear you don’t know _what_ he’s capable of.”

He couldn’t argue.The demon was as much a mystery to him as he was to them, really.But he knew he would never intentionally hurt them.Intentionally.He looked back to the book, heart heavy in his chest.

As Tomlooked away, he walked into the doorway of the exit to the room.It was quiet again.The animator wanted to tell them more about Joey, about the loops, he could feel the words weighing on the back of his tongue, but he didn’t know where they would take them.He wasn’t sure he wanted to go down that road.He didn’t even know how much he really knew.

“I think, if we...” Allison’s voice trailed off as she looked toward the pipe behind the man, she stood, slowly.Tom spun around, both of them seemingly hearing or seeing something he couldn’t.

“Allison?”He leaned forward to push himself up.

Their expressions increased in fear until he could suddenly hear it, a deep moan, resonating within the ceiling and through the pipe. 

Without warning, she dashed forward, reaching out for the human.A second too late - the pipe burst.Ink erupting into the room.Tom was faster, pulling the angel away and rushing them to the exit.

The first wave knocked the animator off his feet, the rest flowing so heavily it covered him before he could get his footing.It was so heavy.

He was drowning.

Allison screamed out his name.

Everything was black.

_Bendy._

Numbness tickled his hands and feet, lungs burning for the relief of air.But they didn’t get it.

Everything was black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com


	20. Nine Lives

_*Squea_ k*

_He’s never broken a promise before._

Sifting through more papers in the drawers of the writing desk, the small demon was looking for more blank sides to draw on.

_Has he ever promised before?_

Sighing with great exasperation (exaggeration), he thunked his head down on the desk.It had been hours (an hour) since Henry had taken Allison and Tom somewhere to talk, and drawing gets boring very quickly when you have nothing else to do.And you’d already spent all day (a few hours) doing it.Pushing his face off the desk, he slouched in the loud chair, looking at the now illegible paperwork with ink smeared across most of it.Maybe a thing made of ink shouldn’t be playing with paper at all.

Sighing more sincerely, he slid off the chair and made his way to the spot on the floor he had been drawing at before.This office was rather boring, no file drawers, no posters, no instruments.Just a desk and a bookshelf with three ‘business’ books on it. 

Lying back down, he faced the ceiling this time.Allison has been very nice, and that meeting definitely went better than last time.He knew she wasn’t really Alice Angel, but she was just as kind.And beautiful.Tom wasn’t really much like Boris, though.Maybe they could still be friends, some day.Maybe...on the outside.

Reluctant to go too far into his own thoughts, his day dreaming was short lived.He didn’t like being alone.

Sitting up, a distant noise caught his attention. _Stepping!_

_They’re coming back!_

They were...running back? The footsteps were fast approaching, a voice joining the chorus of noises.

“Wait!” The rest was too mumbled to hear, but...On his feet now, a sense of panic was creeping into the back of his mind. _Somethings wrong._

It was quiet.Then, the door cracked open.Heart pounding, he was paralyzed.

“Bendy?”

Allison!

Practically teleporting to the door, he pulled it open a touch more so the two could see each other. Finding the angel disheveled and alarmed, a chill swept over him.Pushing the door the rest of the way open, he saw Tom glaring fiercely at him from the hallway.

“Where’s-“

“I don’t know.I’m sorry.”He stumbled back, shock overriding all other thoughts. _He can’t be..._ Stepping into the room, Allison gripped his arm to prevent him from collapsing.

_Gone?_

“You’ve got to get out of here.”  Her voice was strained.  She shifted his arm to keep his attention, “A major pipe burst.This whole floor could get flooded.”  

“But-but Henry-“

“You can’t help him if you’re-“ she cut herself off, an unsettled look flashed briefly across her face.

“We can look for him when we’re safe.”

The thoughts like voices began filling his head, drowning out hers.

_Safe?Henry?He’s gone again.He’s dead.He left you.He’s gone.They hate you.You’ve hurt them.He’s gone.You couldn’t save him.Burden.You don’t deserve to be safe.He’s dead.Monster.He’s gone.Demon.They hate you.He’s...He’s...She’s...She?_

“Bendy!”

The blurry silhouettes of two people where highlighted by the golden light surrounding them, helping pull them back into view.

“Bendy?”  Her voice was tinged with a different fear now, but she had reached him.Where had he gone?

“We...I...I don’t hate you.”

Everything was...blurry, but her voice was more clear than the fuzzy sounds in his head.He was back in the office.He was melting again.Had he repeated everything he’d heard outloud?Pulling together a gloved hand, he wiped his face, knowing now he’d been crying.

“ _We_ need to go.”

Falling forward, he focused on reaffirming his legs and arms, but he was slow, still out of it... _he’s gone_.

  Life breathed into the studio as the walls groaned, the floor boards shifted - the level was succumbing to some kind of pressure.They were running out of time.Grabbing his right hand, Allison pulled the devil out of the room.Tom gave her a look of pleading but her eyes were intense as she looked back.

“I’m _not_ leaving him.”

_‘She’ll leave you for dead.’_

Turning back to way they’d initially come, the trio ran, leaving little time for the toon to make any kind of decision.Everything was changing rapidly, but it’s wasn’t starting over...Unsure of whether or not that was a good sign, Bendy focused on keeping up with the others.They would find Henry eventually.They had to.

 

* * *

 

 

Rounding corners through the dimly lit halls, ink began leaking from the gaping holes in the walls.A few doorways were seeping the black substance, as well as pipes overhead.    Several pipe lines dependent on the artery that had exploded, nearly washed them away, were collapsing now.  The entire floor was caving in.She tried to push any apprehension to the back of her mind, it was too important to lose sight; she needed to focus on where they were headed.Through a janitorial room, there was a stairwell missing it’s second half.The animator had affixed a rope down the center for balance so the broken edges of the stairs could be used to reach the rest.She wasn’t familiar with this part of the studio, it was first time they’d found somewhere new in, well, decades...there had always been a certain ease when it came to traversing the studios, but right now, everything was starting to look the same.

“Tom, do you remember which room the stairs are in?”She could feel an unfamiliarity that disturbed her, _we don’t have time for this!_

“It-It’s this way!”Bendy‘s voice drew here attention from her partner.The first cognizant thing he’d said since he'd realized Henry wasn't still with them, but it sounded certain.Pulling ahead of her, hands still conjoined, he led them to the end of the hall and to the right, the second door on the left.Sure enough, it was the same closet-type roomfrom before, a door concealing the stairs on the other side.

Tom slammed the door behind them as she swung the next one open.Much to her dismay, the rope had snapped.It was going to take considerably longer to get across safely, the same thing occurring to Tom as he caught up.Looking back, they saw ink beginning to leak through the crack at the floor in the doorway.

Panic grappling her throat, it was hard to breathe, hard to think.She hadn’t be this scared...in decades.A gentle pressure snapped her out of it as the small ink demon pushed between the two of them, standing at the precipice of the broken stairwell.He was melting again and, looking back at her, mirroring her dread.

Looking quickly between the two, and the seemingly endless drop in front of them, he held his own head in frustration.The ink was starting to pool onto the floor behind them, catching the attention of the demon.Triggering something in him, he suddenly reached forward and grabbed Tom by his torso.Wincing with surprise, the wolf had no time to respond before the demon spun them both around and, less than gracefully, threw the wolf over the gap and all the way to the plateau between the two flights of stairs on the other side.

Bracing herself, Bendy turned to face the angel.Giving him permission with a nod, he spun back around, crouched, reaching back over his head, grabbed her waist and-

Her heart skipped a beat as she flew through the air and landed roughly alongside Tom, who was rubbing the back of his head, he looked dumbfounded, with a touch of irritated.She pushed herself up in time to see the cartoonish devil clear the gap in a single leap, landing beside her.

“I-I-I’m sorry! Are you okay?!”He was nervously looking them both over, purposefully avoiding their eyes.

Looking to Tom, he begrudgingly nodded to her before she turned back to him.

“Yeah, we’re okay.” He almost looked more upset than before, “Bendy,” she set her hand on his, “we’re okay.”

Meeting her eyes seemed to calm him.Nodding more to himself than her, he sat back and took a deep breath.

Eyes drifting back to the ink now pouring across the floor and into the chasm, she could feel her heart still beating hard in her chest. _That was really...something._ Tom’s hand on her shoulder brought her eyes to his.He was concerned for her, he always was, but they had both made it out relatively well, all things considered.

  Smiling reassuringly, she place her hand on his.His ears still down, he smiled a knowing relief to her before the unsettled frown returned.Casting a quick glance to the ink demon, she knew now what was really bothering him.And...she had to admit.That was pretty terrifying.He’d saved them, but she hadn’t expected that kind of strength from him.Henry had mentioned he’d retained _some_ , albeit very few, traits of the Ink Demon, but perhaps he’d been trying to play them down for fear of them knowing the true potential of his ‘Bendy’.Maybe Henry wasn’t so different from the creator after all...

And yet...he had used his power to help them.

Sensing the eyes on him, the demon peeled his attention away from the other side of the collapsed stairwell to meet her gaze.His eyes, already taking up a large portion of his face, somehow opened wider, like he’d remembered something.He surprised her again by scrambling to get away from them, pulling himself to the wall on his right.He looked...scared.He averted his eyes again as he gathered himself as much away from them as possible.

An unexpected guilt grabbed her heart.He really did seem a lot like the sheepish toon in the clips of reels that played around the studio.Sharing an apologetic look with Tom, he shrugged, much less bothered by it than her.

Sighing, both of her companions looked to her as she started getting back to her feet.

“I guess we should keep moving, before something else catches up to us.”She spoke calmly, dusting off her dress.Tom was quick to follow her lead, but Bendy only looked back across the way.

_He doesn’t want to leave Henry..._

Stepping towards him, and recapturing his attention, she knelt back down, “We can try to find another way, but I don’t think we’ll find him there, now.”

There’s no way he could’ve made it out of there...is there?She didn’t like lying, even to someone she didn’t fully trust, but Henry had surprised them before.Actually, that’s really all he did - surprise them.

Either way, it seemed to work.The devil used the wall to stand up, before offering an anxious smile.Standing up, she smiled back without thinking, but it felt good.It felt good to smile.With one look back over the gap, the demon followed her as Tom led them up the rest of the stairs.

Maybe Henry would surprise them again.She sure hoped so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com


	21. See You Soon

It was never quiet in the studios...but it was louder than usual.She could hear the reels buzzing in the level above them, she could her the sloshing of the ink, turbulently adjusting to the pressure change from the burst pipe, she could hear the floorboards underfoot, crying out with every step.The only comforting sounds were the soft breaths of her companion.Companion _s_. 

It was still difficult to fathom that the small, cartoonish devil walking beside her was really the Ink Demon himself.The occasional glance at the demon was a stark reminder of the missing member of their party, after all, none of this would have been possible if not for Henry.

Henry...she found herself back in the storage room.His words replaying in her head. _‘You can’t create a soul.’_ Who was ‘Allison’?How could they have been trapped here for so long without learning about them?Did she have a family?She should know better than to trust him...but after so much suffering, so much pain...she was desperate for a shred of light.

The sensation of eyes on her tickled the back of her neck, calling her attention to the devil.His eyes were gentle, curious.Melancholy.  But as soon as their eyes met, he... _he blushed?_ Recalling their first meeting, she remembered that he did, in fact, ‘blush’ a deep grey tone.His eyes darted away, startled by the fact she’d caught him staring.

Sympathy played at her, it felt so much like interacting with a child, and despite knowing better...she couldn’t help but want to comfort him.Stealing a glance at Tom, he was reluctantly watching the demon, too, disapproval intensifying his features.The demon didn’t notice, however, he was still too flustered, only now, he seemed less embarrassed more...frustrated.With himself.

Arguing with herself momentarily, she decided they could all use a little distraction...

“Bendy?”

Startling him from his thoughts, the demon looked back to her, “Y-yeah?”

Glancing back at Tom, who was watching her questioningly, she returned her focus to the devil.

“Do you have any idea where Henry could be?” _If he’s still alive..._ “Did you ever make a plan for if you two got separated?”

Shaking his head, he returned his gaze to the floor before them as they followed a more familiar string of hallways.

“He-he said we had to stay, um, stay...” placing one of his cartoonishly gloved hands on his cheek, he was again frustrated with himself, annoyed at the blank space where the man’s voice should be in his head.

“Hidden?”In an attempt to help, the angel made the mistake of perpetuating his struggle.Stopping in the middle of the end of the hallway, he placed the other hand on his face as well.A few subtle drops of ink rolled down his face, dropping deftly onto the floor.

“He said...he said...”Breaths slowing, heavy, a chill washed over him.The shock finally catching up, a strangled sob was all he could manage.Thick, black ink tears pushed out from behind his hands, trembling as his knees buckled underneath.The ink making up his body was fluid, undulating, faintly losing form as it pooled around him.

He cried out as if something was hurting him. _Is he...melting?_  It was hard to watch as Allison pulled her arms up, holding herself as she averted her eyes towards Tom.He looked far more uneasy than she expected, but his toon-like eyes continued to open wider, watching the demon.Placing a hand on her shoulder, he urged her with his expression to look back at the creature.

He wasn’t melting, that’s for sure.Running down the center of his back, a row of short, bone like spines was attempting to emerge from the distorted ink, his horns changing with them.He was slowly growing in stature, making his the resemblance to the past even more crystal clear.

Henry had admitted he ‘isn’t entirely stable’, but this...this was a nightmare come true.Both stepping back, the ink around him consumed more of the floor.She felt cold. She couldn't think a single coherent thought, she was panicking.  Battling the urge to run, the urge to attack, the urge to cry out in frustration...Tom stepped closer, she could see his pipe in the corner of her eye, but seeing it... she knew.  She knew she didn’t want to fight.Something confused her fear...an uncertainty.She didn’t just want to run.She...she...

_I don’t want to hurt him._

“Tom, wait.” Grabbing his wrist as he leaned into a step, he shot back a look of horrified confusion.Her own face looked haunted, but determination was in her eyes.Not waiting for an argument, she pushed ahead of him.The demon was still crying, but between gasps, she could hear something...something soft.  For a moment, she wasn't sure, but stepping closer still, she could hear him.

  "Its o-okay.  You're okay.  He-he'll be back.  H-Henry's okay."

  He was trying desperately to soothe himself, to stop himself.A pang of sadness reassured her of her actions.  _He wont hurt us.He’s not the Ink Demon anymore_.He’s not the Ink Demon anymore.

Almost feeling as if Henry himself was guiding her, she took another step closer.Then another.Her throat tightened as his voice became clearer.It sounded...like more than one.Freezing for a heartbeat, her breaths were short and fast as she stepped closer, setting one foot into the ink surrounding him.

Then, there was pain.So much pain.Everything was swallowed by ink before she could even blink.Screaming, yelling - the voices she heard in her sleep, only louder, angrier.And pain.It was heavy, and hard to breathe, and every inch of her hurt.A crushing pain.She could barely stand it...it was so hard to see, the pain was blinding, finally bringing her to her knees...but she was not alone.There, a few feet ahead of her, was Bendy.Or at least she hoped so.She couldn’t find the strength to use her voice, but something told her she didn’t need to.

_Bendy...Bendy, please.You have to stop.I-I..._

Ripped from the world, she fell backwards, but she did not hit the ground.The light was blinding after such a darkness, but the pain was subsiding.She could breath, she could hear, her heart pounding so hard it felt like it might burst.But as her body adjusted, the toonish wolf came back into view.

“Tom...?”His face was contorted with worry, and she realized he was the only thing keeping her on her feet.She was shaky, but she knew she could stand, shuffling away slightly, to let him know she was okay.He kept his hands on her arms, concern denying any relief.

“I’m okay, really.I...” she turned her gaze back to the devil.A surprised relief washed over her as she realized his form hadn’t progressed any further, the ink itself was slowing down.He’d reached one hand forward to steady himself with the wall, and while his breathing was still broken up by grasps, few tears were falling.

Much to his despair, she turned further away from her companion, taking a half step towards the demon.

“...Bendy...?”

He turned his head ever so slightly, his hand drifting away from his face barely enough to see the glowing gold pupil flick towards her.A chill of excitement took her breath as their eyes locked.

_He always looks so scared._

Reminding herself to breath, her courage was resurfacing, “I-it...it’s going to be okay.”Another step, “We’ll find him.”

Somehow, it felt like less of a lie this time.

The last of the residual ink sliding off of him, the demon weakly sat back, arms wrapping around his small frame.A tear or two still occasionally escaping, running down his face.

Step by step, she closed the distance, until she stood beside the demon.An urge to put her hand on his back was strong, but she couldn’t manage it without a hesitation.When her hand finally settled on the back of his head, his bottomless, black eyes looked up at her, an indescribable feeling reverberating between the two.A kind of hope, maybe.

For a second, just a second, the fear was gone.It felt like she knew everything would be okay.Henry could save them.She knew it now.

  They were finally going to be free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com


	22. Missing Pieces

Screaming, crying, wailing.

 

  Falling.

 

Consciousness flooded back into him as he gasped, throat spasming, drinking up the air.He couldn’t see, though, his eyes were obstructed by a thick layer of black ink.Arms.Hands.Legs.Articulating each part of his body, he rolled onto his back.While pain radiated throughout him, nothing in particular seemed ‘broken’.Slowly lifting a hand to clean the ink off his face, a cool feeling numbed his arm.Blinking the water from his eyes, he saw...blood. 

The bright red contrasted the black wildly, a vertical gash running down his right arm, straight through the other wound, previously left by Tom.

_Allison...Tom..._

The pipe...he hadn’t heard it in time.Memory of the explosion collecting his focus, fear settled in. _Did they make it out?Are they okay?Where’s Bendy?Is he okay?_

Eyes unfocused on the ceiling that was no longer there, ink dropped off an exposed pipe, landing beside his eye.He’d fallen far, he couldn’t even see into another level.Only pipes and brick and broken wood.

Wiping the drop off his face with his less-damaged arm, he then pressed his elbow into the floor, using the leverage to sit up.Sparks of light filled his vision for an instant, dizziness nearly knocking him back down.He had no notion of how long he’d been unconscious, but his arm was still bleeding, which was very bad.

Carefully, with his left hand, he started unbuttoning his shirt.One by one, as he worked, he started focusing on his breathing.He hadn’t realized how labored it was...pausing to take a deeper breath and calm himself, he continued.Untucking what very little of his shirt that was still tucked neatly into his slacks, he had a white tank top underneath the shirt that he could finally remove, which was his main goal, and much easier than the button-up.

Sliding the prior back over his shoulders, he took the tank top back up with his left hand.He couldn’t quite tear it with one hand, so he took one strap in his teeth and tore the rest away. 

Releasing the rag, the smell of the long-unwashed shirt tainted his mouth.Doing his best to ignore it, he took the makeshift rag and worked it around his wounds.Tying it firmly...it was all so reminiscent of his time as a soldier.  Not a time he looked back on fondly.Nonetheless, it had provided him with some of the knowledge he now needed to survive this place.

Picking up the remainder of the undershirt, he tied it around his left wrist, next moving to the fix the buttons on the other.Pulling his knees up, he rested his arms against them, shifting his body weight forward to stay sitting up while he fully reoriented himself.The hallway was quite long, no doors or windows...not even holes in the walls.Only the hole in the ceiling the pipe had made.A few posters, but not for the shorts - warnings, the kind for the employees, to ‘inspire’ them to ‘Work Hard, Work Happy’.  _Another leg of Administrative?_   Another drop of ink landed on his shoulder.

Taking a deep breath, he worked his way back up to his feet.He had to get back to Bendy as quickly as possible, who knows what could be going on back up there...The hall ended in a dead end behind him, so there was only really one way to go.On the other end, a time stamp, eerily outlined by the single light above it.Not ominous at all.

Navigating around the broken boards, he was silently grateful no greater harm had come to him in the fall, making his way toward the end of the hall.

_Not gunna make this easy on me, are ya, Joey..._

 

* * *

 

 

After following that hallway to a narrow corridor before what seemed to be a meeting room, he found a short stairwell drowned in ink.He knew the game well by this point.He’d have to find valve, retrieve it's wheel, and drain the ink to follow the path.The valve was in a janitorial closet at the other end of a hall before the meeting room, but the wheel?No clue.Every second passing by felt like wasted time, anxiety plucking at every thought, louder and louder and louder.Every new scenario that came to the man was more unpleasant than the last.  All the things that could go wrong with leaving those three alone...He suspected they might not have even told the toon what had happened, making their own escape, like last time.Part of him almost hoped so.If they had taken him with them, or even just told him, he probably would have followed them, anyway.And if he lost control...he wouldn’t stand a chance.Against all of the enemies they had faced, he’d never once attacked.He was so scared...of just about everything.Reminding himself that he’d been trapped as that monster, following Joey Drew’s script...for decades...Guilt raked his heart.

A strange idea occurred to him, just then, pulling him back from his worries. _The time stamp._ Doing his best to hurry, while still terribly bruised, he made his way back to the aged device affixed to the wall.He was still weary to use his right arm, so he glanced back down the hall to the debris.

A broken piece of floorboard should do it. 

Retrieving his tool, he slammed it between the wall and the device, working repetitively until it finally detached from the wall.  _Another day, another dollar._   Sure enough, there was a cove behind it, hiding the rusted valve wheel.An odd place to put one, unless you’re deliberately trying to delay someone.

Annoyed, but still ever so aware of how much time was passing, Henry hurried back to the closet, and finally, to the stairwell.A minor win to find it fully drained and usable, but he was still technically headed in the wrong direction: down.

Unfortunately, it was the only direction to go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com


	23. Shooting Stars

The ink lapped at his shins, saturating his long-since permanently stained pants.He could feel it on his legs, sticking, pulling, as he walked.The messages scrolled messily across the walls didn’t matter much to him anymore.Warnings, threats, grievances - he was quite in tune with their heartache.The pain felt by all souls trapped in this cursed place.He was one of them, after all.

* * *

 

Ink pooled into his shoes as he stepped down and into the flow.Lapping against his shins, it flowed to the right, almost inspiring the human to travel left down the outstretching tunnels.He couldn’t tell what would seem unpredictable anymore, and it was becoming increasingly clear that it didn’t matter...Joey would always have the upper hand.But that certainly didn’t mean giving up.He forced down the worrying thoughts with determination as he carried on, deciding to follow the flow, ignoring the harrowing reminders etched across the tunnel walls that he was not alone down here.

‘THERE IS NO HOPE’

‘HE LIED TO US’

Not exactly the company he’d grown used to.

His breaths echoed softly around him, the rhythmic sloshing of the ink with every step became his focus.His arm felt hot.The dirty, worn rag he’d fashioned from a cotton undershirt might have helped stop the flow of blood, but he suspected an infection would soon infiltrate the wound...not his first down here, granted, but definitely the worst.The sounds helped keep him distracted as he moved.

Thoughts of the ink demon prying their way into the forefront of his mind, he’d decided to believe that Allison and Tom were taking care of him.After telling them some of the truth, a gnawing suspicion that this was not true churned his stomach.But the reel hadn’t been played yet, which _has_ _to_ _mean_ _something_ , _right?_

A second tunnel approached, giving him the option to continue forward, or diverge from this route.Coming close enough to peer down the offshoot, light from what appeared to be a doorway down the tunnel and to the left caught his attention.It seemed familiar as he approached it, when he realized more light was coming from not just the doorway, but the ceiling above.He found himself directly under another hole, staring back at him.A spark of realization threw his gaze to the doorway beside him.

 _The_ _Administrative_ _offices_.

Relief at the familiarity welled in his chest.Knowing now where he was, it would surely only be a matter of time before he found his companions.Retuning his attention up to the levels above, a bright golden hue suddenly engulfed everything, a searing pain erupting from behind his eyes.Hands filled the space, reaching out in desperation, voices cluttering his head as he was submerged into darkness.Pressure weighed on him like a building collapsing in on itself.Memories fighting to regain lineage shocked the air from his lungs.

Then, he could breathe again.The ink fell away as quickly as it had consumed him, while the light faded from view.The tunnel was quiet and empty again.His hand was on his chest, he was breathing heavily.Short gasps at first, but he let his mind sit back, letting his body catch back up.Stepping forward, he found the ledge to the doorway and stumbled into the lobby.

The man could only let himself collapse to the ground, attempting to maintain some semblance of control, he then rolled onto his back.His eyes locked onto the ceiling.The music from the radio was faint, but a welcome break from the uncomfortable silence that had accompanied him since he’d woken up.It had been...quite a while.His chest was still tense as he took in another deep breath, trying to let the memories settle back in amongst the others.All of the times he’d fallen...he was starting to understand how long he’d been here.If he couldn’t age here, he had no concept of how long he’d been missing from reality.What if it’s all real time?What if he’s been trapped for decades?Would he have any family left?A hollow kind of feeling began growing in his chest and stomach.It seemed like he truly knew nothing about this place.

The memory of the first time backtracking through this area caught up with the rest, when Bendy had accidentally transported the man back to the harbor.He’d been meaning to talk to the toon about his relationship with the ink, for the very situations like this one, but he’d never found the right time to.In hindsight, they should’ve addressed it from the beginning.Treating him like an innocent child wouldn’t do either of them any good, the devil’s memories of this place were much more reliable,and sooner or later, he’d have to learn how to cope with thinking about them.Instead, the animator had distanced them from the demon.The toon was still traumatized, after all.He didn’t want to be cruel, but Bendy might be their only chance to get out of there.Things would get better after that, and then he really wouldn’t have to think about this place anymore. A familiar question cut off his train of thought.

Can he leave this place?

Ever since the realization that the demon wasn’t a human soul trapped by the ink, his concerns about getting him out of the studio were countless.He didn’t know if it was physically possible, if the toon’s life blood consisted of the souls of hundreds...and what if he lost control in the real world and hurt someone.What if he killed someone?If he even could even survive without the ink...If he could, how would the human take care of him?How long would he live?How could they exist in the same world?

Every doubt, every question, drove a nail further into his heart.He’d never stopped loving the toon he’d sketched out all those years ago, even after everything with Joey...Finding him inside the Ink Demon was the only saving grace of this whole situation.It was like...finding a son he’d lost decades ago.

He could feel the muscles in his face so tense he was only worsening his headache, but nothing would ease this tension.It had been ebbing and flowing without relief since he’d remembered everything.His heart was breaking all over again.

 _I_ _have_ _to_ _tell_ _him_ _the_ _truth._

The heat on his arm mirrored itself in his face, tears threatening to roll back into his hair as he closed his eyes.The backs of his eyelids held him captive as the thoughts melted into feeling.He was so tired.

Sleep caressed him but he stayed awake, letting his emotions open raw wounds in his chest until the beating of his heart let him rest.The music was the only thing left in his mind as he drifted off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one took so long! Had some serious writers block!


	24. Three’s A Crowd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)

With the ink demon at her side, she knew their previous refuge would be safe, but with the lift thoroughly ruined, it was taking longer than expected to maneuver around the decrepit building.With a simple glance at her friend, it was clear he was as exhausted as her.The demon showed very little signs of anything other than anxiety.He’d kept more of a distance behind the two, but whether it was from embarrassment or the threatening glares from Tom that kept him there, she didn’t know. 

A more reassuring trust of him inspired her, she understood now what Henry had tried to explain to her, about his changes.He really wasn’t the Ink Demon anymore, but Tom now seemed even more convinced of the opposite.But she knew he trusted her.Together, they might all be able to recover some true modicum of trust, but it would take a while.Quite a while.

Exhaustion surely wouldn’t help their moods, though.She could tell a sliver of his anger was with her, for endangering herself like that, without explanation, even if he wouldn’t admit it.They could do with a break.

“Tom.”

His gaze softened as he turned to attention.

“I think we should stop for the day.”

His eyes averted as they slowed to a stop.They hadn’t been bothered by searchers nor gang members, seemingly because of their newly acquired companion, so any room with a locking door should provide them with enough security.His tired eyes met hers as he nodded his agreement.

Bendy remained several feet back watching them with sorry eyes.Drawing her eyes to meet them only found their focus on his own feet.A smile skirted her lips as she took a few steps toward him, regaining his attention.

“Are...you tired?”She left a slight distance, for his own comfort.A careful nod bloomed her smile as she came closer, resting her hand on his shoulder.

A fleeting smile, the first she’d seen on him since his ‘episode’, reassured her as she led them back towards the wolf.He carefully kept his eyes off the devil, opting instead to move towards the room at the end off the hall, stealing a glance with Allison, as if to ask if she was certain.A discreet nod was enough to prompt the man to scout out the small office first.

Making sure the door was unlocked, he walked into a room much larger than expected.It was very dark, no light aside from the rectangle stretched out beside him from the hallway.His eyes adjusted well, a talent gained with much practice.It looked...like an important office.Perhaps the head of whatever department they were in.A desk against running along the right wall, some chairs before it, a light breeze from the hole in the far wall...but not much else.A bookshelf, perhaps?Or a cabinet?Something tall sat in the far left corner, but not something living, so it didn’t really concern him.

Skirting the room once before returning, he pulled the door open as an invitation of safety.Allison guided the demon towards the room, his iridescent eye appearing brighter in the shadows than before.Although, it did softly illuminate the room enough to shut the door.It did, however, call an unsettling attention to the fact that he did not blink.Huh.

“What do you think, Tom?”

Still consciously avoiding the devil, the wolf eventually gave an approving bob of his head.Sharing a soft smile between the two, the angel moved towards the largest open space on the floor and began unfastening her weapon, and silently lying down.

Flat on her back, one hand beside the sword, she looked more calm than Bendy’s ever a being be in the studio.Tom almost instinctively followed suit, but he stayed sitting, propping himself against the hard wall behind her, arms crossed.Both looked ready to spring to action, should the need arise.The man finally decided to look at the demon, but only with warning in his eyes, holding it for several minutes before letting them close.

 

* * *

 

 

It had been hours.He’d sat completely still.Listening.Hearing.Feeling the air shift in the most minuscule way with each breath.He’d tried very hard not to think, not to linger.It was scary being alone.Always.But it was impossible not to let his thoughts find his missing animator.Was he hurt?Alive?Would they find him?Could they find him?It was scary.Being...without him.It was more than losing a piece of himself, without Henry, he was...he was the Ink Demon.His body convulsed, rejecting the thought. _The truth._

He could feel the ink running off him, feel every drop like water.He had to stop himself before it happened again. Henry. _Henry please don’t leave me like this._ He didn’t feel his eyes close until he thought to open them.His ink had settled.It was easier to stop himself even just thinking of the man.

He found himself staring at the angel sleeping before him.Henry called her Allison but he could feel the name Alice at the tip of his tongue every time he was near her.He wanted to wake her, just for the company, but he knew that would be cruel.Her breath was so quiet, there were times he’d watch her chest to make sure it was only sleep that had claimed her.

Eyes training on the other ink being, the demon had no difficulty differentiating Tom from his best friend.His slumber was much less peaceful.Twitching, eyelids fluttering, small sounds you’d barely catch.But he was sleeping, nonetheless.Really, really sleeping.Looking between the two for a few more minutes, Bendy let a strange courage guide him into action.

He crouched forward, repeatedly checking Tom’s eyes for any sign of consciousness, and half-walked, half-crawled across the room.He stopped beside Allison, keeping enough distance that he knew he would not wake her, despite the floors best efforts to thwart him with their creaking.Eyes flickering to Tom one last time, he let himself relax enough to lower onto his side.Lying beside her, he only watched her for a few heartbeats before resting his eyes.

She didn’t feel like Henry, she didn’t give off any warmth, like he did, but the closeness, the sound of her living, was more than enough.

He lost track of how long he’d been there, but as his eyes opened slowly, he bit back a gentle gasp to find she’d turned to her side as well, facing him.The fear of stirring her pushed him away.He was on his feet beside the door without a sound in a matter of seconds.Neither gave the impression to have noticed, so he hoped he could pull off one more trick.Facing the closed door, he’d heard it before when Tom had first opened it, and later closed it, there was no getting out the noise it would bring if he so much as attempted to slip out, even with how little he’d have to open it.But, there was...one way.

An uneasiness in his metaphorical stomach made him weary.He’d never done anything like it on purpose, but...he needed to try.With a solemn glance back to his companions, he closed his eyes.Without hesitation, he turned back and pushed forward.

Nothing.

He didn’t hear anything.

He didn’t feel anything.

Daring to open his eyes, he found himself in the hallway outside of the room he’d spent the past several hours in.A thrill of excitement shot through him. 

_ I did it!_

He’d done it.He’d controlled the ink.Glee from his new found ability was quickly stifled by the reminder that he was, still in fact, the Ink Demon.

But...toons can do weird stuff, too, right?

While this was true, he knew this was not a cartoon.Nothing would change the fact that he was a demon.A real one.But he was Bendy the Dancing Demon, after all.The Little Devil Darling.Ignoring the morally ambiguous implications of designing a cartoon for children as a literal demon, it wasn’t what he was that defined him.Henry has made him a devil, sure, but he’d also made him to be funny, sweet, silly.He could practically hear the now old animator in his head, reminding him of everything he could be.Everything he was back then.

Watching his feet, he realized he was walking.He’d been walking.Picking his head back up, he wasn’t even sure of where he was, yet it certainly felt like he knew where he was going.It wasn’t until he entered an achingly familiar, large open room that he realized.

The sanctuary.

His eyes found what he hadn’t realized he’d been looking for.The intimidating statue of an on-model Bendy stood across from him, looking out as if to remind anyone within eyesight that there was no privacy in this place.Drifting closer, he knew why he’d been drawn here.As much as he didn’t want to believe the man had died, he was hoping beyond hope that he might just be summoned to this shrine regardless.Sinking down to his knees, he waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Pressure under his eyes was proof that the drops on his legs were not just the usual excess ink.His arms felt numb, he did not bother to wipe the tears from his face.

_ Please._

_ Please give him back. _

_ Henry, please. _

_ Come back. _


	25. Back in Black

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s ya boy uhhhhh Sammy Lawrence

  A sharp pain shot through his back and up his neck, his eyes flying open.A ghost pain from the last loop.But why...?

It was hard to breathe.The pressure from his shirt collar choked him.He was being pulled by his shirt.Besides the bolt that had woken him, the several current contusions riddling his back didn’t exactly make it comfortable to be dragged along the ground like some kind of rag doll.But he remained quiet, trying not to gasp for air before figuring out who his captor was.Although, he had a pretty good guess.

Skillfully tilting his head back without notice, his eyes found golden overalls, muddied by decades of ink stains.His assumption had been correct.

_God_ _damnit_ , _Sammy_.

He didn’t know what the crazed Music Director wanted from him, but he’d better not be trying to sacrifice him again.Of course, there was some humor in the idea that he’d befriend the very same demon the other had claimed to worship for so long.Although, the appeal seemed to have warn off by the last time they’d encountered each other.

“Oh, you’re awake.”They stopped, but he didn’t give the animator a chance to respond, “How unfortunate.”

A glint of light flashed off the pipe in the other’s hand as he raised it above his head.Mere centimeters came between the weapon and his skull as he pulled himself out of the possessed man’s grip, rolling to the side.

Couldn’t they just talk?For once?

“Don’t make this harder than it has to be.”

Another swing was dodged, but not without catching the top of his shoulder.Gritting his teeth, he pushed himself up and back, away from another almost blind strike through the air.

“I’ve been a fool.For a very long time, I’ve been a fool.”

The monologuing.

His voice was tight and angry, but he sounded distant, almost...He lunged forward, hitting Henry square in the chest, knocking the air from his lungs.

“I never realized.Never thought about it!”

Falling against the wall of the dirt tunnel they were in, he narrowly dodged a second blow.

“I’ve been so BLIND!”He was practically snarling at this point.The older animator was struck by the urge to lunge at the inky person, one he didn’t deny.He grabbed the pipe with his good arm.

“It’s the  _machine_ .”

The whisper bled into his skin and straight through his mind.

_The_ _machine?_

“It’s always been,” he wrestled the human off and to the ground, “the machine!”

With the brief reprieve he got when the musician threw his hands into the air, he took the opportunity to kick his legs out from under him.

Only he didn’t seem upset.While the animator scrambled to his feet, the other simply reached his hand up, as if he were asking for help.

“I’ve been enlightened, Henry.”A deep chill overtook his body.He’d never said his name before.Not in any loop. _How_ _do_ _I_ _know_ _that?_

“You can be, too.”

He could only step back, trying to reign in his shock.

“The machine will cleanse us with its ink.”

_... excuse me? _

“Sammy, that’s not-“

His mood flicked back in a heartbeat and he was on his feet again swinging, “It  **will** cleanse  me!”

He frantically rushed forward, knocking the human back down onto a much flatter dirt floor.He hadn’t noticed it before, but he could now clearly hear the ink running furiously through the river behind them.The music director had dragged him all the way back to the Ink Machine.

“It **WILL** cleanse  us  **ALL** **!** ”

Both hands were busy pinning the animator’s to land the finishing blow, giving him his last chance.

“Sammy, please, just listen to me for a min-”

“Why?!Why must you fight it?!”

“Sammy!”

His sharp tone seem to resonate with him, if even just for a second.

“Sammy please, please just let me talk to you.”

“There is only one way.”Bright light distorted his vision as the musician slammed his head furiously against Henry’s.

“It will show you the way.”He got off the human, reassuming the position to drag him, with both arms now, towards the ink.

Too disoriented to fight, he grabbed both of the ink stained arms, “ Sammy, please!Listen to me!”

“Sammy!”

He pulled the human upwards, against his torso, elbow constricting his throat like a python.

“It will show you...the way.”

Using every lost ounce of strength he had, he grabbed the arm with both hands, and jerked forward.Successfully uprooting his attacker enough that he let go to catch himself.

Fighting off the dizziness delaying his movements, he ran for the pipe.In one fell move, he grabbed it, spinning on his heel into a crouch, facing the ink creature.

“We don’t have to do this, Sammy.Not anymore.”

The large, dark gouges in his head where his eyes should be stared at him.They stayed like that for an incredibly long couple of minutes before the animator pushed the boundaries just a hair more.

“You called me Henry before.If you who I am, why won’t you talk to me?”

More stunned silence for a moment longer before the ink possessed person stumbled backwards, akin to a stunned animal.

Nerves constricted his throat, he’d never actually gotten this close to talking to Sammy.Talking  with Sammy.One wrong word could set him off again.

He could see a vacancy growing in the eyes watching him.

“Sammy...do you remember who I am?”

Nothing.He gave him enough time to respond for it to become awkward.

“We don’t have to do this, you don’t have to-“

“The machine will cleanse me.”He didn’t sound very convincing.

“Do you remember?”

Followed by more silence.He lowered the pipe, setting it beside his foot.

“We were friends.”

“Before you left.”

His heart skipped a beat, but as he searched his gaze, it was somewhere beyond him.

“Henry?”

“Yeah.”

“Henry.”

A strangled feeling cloyed at his throat.He couldn’t tell if he was making progress or losing him again.He shifted into a less painful position to maintain, putting weight onto a knee.

“Nobody’s called me Sammy in a long time.”A small laugh escaped him after that.So pained and choked, reflecting the man inside.

“When you left, everything changed.”

A twisting pain tied his stomach in knots, “Yeah, I...kinda noticed.”

The music director closed his eyes for another break from the conversation.It appeared to be putting a lot of strain on him.

“I know you’re still in there.We can get out of here.Together.”

His eyes were still closed.

“It’s been 30 years, Henry.Where...” his eyes shot open then, fear in his body language.

Without warning, ink began pooling at the edge of the river, searchers pulling themself forward by the dozens.

On his feet in an instant, Henry’s secured the pipe in his hand.

“We’ve gotta go.”

The musician stared at him, the creatures getting closer, “...we?”He seemed taken aback.

Rushing forward, he pulled the man away from the blow of a monster, swinging out once before pulling him back the way they’d come.

“We can discuss this later, we’ve got to go!”


	26. Deeper, Deeper, Deeper Still

_The sounds of footsteps._

 

His feet stumbled beneath him, an inky hand keeping him upright.

“We can’t out run them!”

 

_“What’s going on!?”_

 

Another sprung out of the floor, as if on cue.His legs were shaking, his body wasn’t up for this, but he had to push on.

 

_“I-I just thought-“_

 

They stumble back into the administrative offices.His head was on fire, vision blurry. 

The music director rushed past him, to the ink pressing machine.He held the searchers at bay until two swollen searchers appeared, much more aggressively than before.

A blow blindsided him, knocking him to his feet, just in time to watch Sammy jump into the fray brandishing a hatchet.

“Can you stand?”

 

_“What were you doing?!”_

 

Using the pipe and the hand offered to him, he was up.Trembling, sweat soaked his body.He couldn’t maintain this much longer.He laid his hand over the bruise marring his side as he chased the musician into the flooded hallways.

 

_“Nothing, I swear!!”_

 

Ink splashing wildly underfoot, they ran through the tunnels, creating a comfortable distance before he collapsed on his knees.

 

_“Get away from there!Now!”_

 

“They can’t follow us here.”

He slumped in the river of ink, gasping for breath that hurt to take in.He heard the other moving, but was surprised to feel hands resting on his shoulder and back.Guiding him up slowly, he allowed his old friend to bear his weight.

 

_“Wait!I was only-“_

 

“We can’t stay here, either, the ink will poison you.”

 

_“Tom, NO!”_

 

They worked their way back to the exit he’d initially come down from.Once he could brace himself on the platform, Sammy pulled himself out, turning back to hoist him upward and into safety.

Collapsing backwards, he closed his eyes.Mind reeling, body aching - he coughed, pain tearing through him.

He opened his eyes to find his newest companion, one of his oldest friends, watching him with anxiety.

“You’re bleeding.”

“I know, it’s-“

“Internally.”

Finding the strength to pull a hand to his face, sure enough, blood was on it when he pulled it back.

“S’been a rough couple ‘a days.”

He heard the musician shift.Tilting his head to find the other curled in on himself, chin on his knees.

The silence lasted a while, Sammy touching his shoulder once in a while to keep him awake.

“...I don’t...I don’t think I’m gunna...last much longer.”

Sliding his legs down, the musician sat on his knees beside the animator.

His breathing was labored and thick, he couldn’t stop drifting in and out of consciousness.

“I...I haven’t been myself in a long time.”His large, dark eyes closed for a moment, “Thank you.”

“This...isn’t goodbye...” his breathing more shallow by the second.  There was a surprising warmth in his hands.

He opened his eyes, finding a hint of confusion on the other’s face.

“Find...Bendy...”

  Tipping backwards, the old music director was certainly confused now, a touch of horror mixed in, but he wouldn’t get the chance to ask.

“Trust me......please....”

* * *

 

He watched in silence as the human grew still, shock washing over him.

“H-Henry?”

His eyes were half lidded, he’d stopped breathing...

_The Ink Demon?!_

_Why would he-?!_

Stumbling backwards, horror interrupted his thoughts as tendrils of ink shot forth from the river, swiftly consuming the man’s lifeless body.

Hand over his mouth, he choked back a gasp.Everything had happened so quickly.It felt like he’d woken up into a nightmare.Maybe it was better to be unaware in a place like this.

Taking the hatchet and retreating to the stairs, he sat back down. 

_‘Find Bendy.’_

_Jesus Christ, Henry..._

What did he mean when he said it wasn’t goodbye?This whole situation was absurd, to say the least.Still.He could feel a flutter in his heart, if he still had one, anyway...this didn’t feel like the end.If Henry could end up here after 30 some years, maybe it wasn’t hard to believe that more odd things would start happening.

He shook off his nerves as he got back to his feet.  He had to think about this somewhere else.  Somewhere away from the ink.  Taking a deep breath, he turned to head up the stairs when something caught his eye.

The river...It was unsettled again.It was...almost bubbling.Moving.Like it was coming to life.

  Moving further up the stairs, his gaze was fixated on the convulsing liquid, it’s harsh movements sending a chill up his spine.

Without warning, a hand shot out of the ink, grasping the edge of the platform.Tripping backwards, he landed harshly on the steps, mouth agape in terror.Another hand followed the first, both working to pull a horned head from the dark river.

It was him.

It was only a matter of seconds before the creature stood before him, eclipsing him within its shadow.

It was  so much worse than before.

Bones jutted out from it ribcage, real ones, spines on its back and elbows, the same.A sharp, toothy mouth opened vertically, breaking apart the left side of its face, ink oozing out of it.Massive claws distorted it’s right hand, with two gaping holes clear through it.That wide toothy grin remained the same.

It stepped towards him, ink running off of itself in gallons, lifting its gloved hand towards him.He pulled himself away, but then hesitated.Was this what Henry wanted?!

It came another step closer, but it’s legs wouldn’t support it any longer as it collapsed before him.Both hands clenching, it dug misshapen fingers into the stone floor. Then, it shriveled.Curling in on itself, a low moan of a wail echoed throughout the tunnels.

Was it...hurt?

Remaining still, the creature cried out again, louder, sharper.It sounded like a hundred voices, a chorus of nightmares.

His chest was so tight, he could barely breath, and there wasn’t any chance he could find the will to move closer.

It laid there, wailing out, while ink pooled around it.It almost seemed...to be melting?

Frozen in place, his eyes glued to monster before him, ebbing away ever so slowly, so painfully.He could feel the tips of his fingers growing numb from grasping his weapon with both hands.Each wail evoking a flinch, but even its cries were tapering, becoming more clear.It was calling for someone.Henry?

One voice becoming more distinct than the others...

It sounded like...a child...

_Oh god..._

The majority of the ink had flooded off, but a very distinctive outline remained.It was a child.Calling for Henry.Something inside of him twisted.If it was physically possible, he would’ve been sick.

It’s cries had grown soft, more like whimpers now.It made no effort to move.

“H-Henry...please....p-please don’t....”

Maybe he still could throw up after all.Trying desperately to steady his breathing, he defied his shaking legs and stood.It took no notice of him.He could still see the horns...this had to be what Henry had been talking about, right?

His voice stuck in his throat, but he forced out a weak call.

“...Bendy...?”

Moving slowly, it pulled its head from the pool.A very off-model face, but easily recognizable, nonetheless.Ink obstructed most of it anyway, but not that piercing golden pupil.

He was crying ink.

Realizing the situation, the child panicked, flailing backwards, nearly slipping off the edge of the platform.

“No, wait!” His voice was hushed but strained.The ink child watched him with wide, scared eyes.

“I was...I know Henry.”Instinctively, he knelt down, finding the nerve to set the hatchet beside himself.He was desperate not to undo the progress Henry had made, even if everything in his body was telling him to run.

“He’s...” he swallowed the lump in his throat, “I don’t know where he is, but he told me to find you.”He offered a hand, like you would to a cat, “you’re Bendy, yes?”

He only glanced at the hand for a second before locking eyes again.

“My...my name is Samuel.Sammy.” It sounded strange even to him.Yet the demon seemed to understand.

“Sammy...Lawrence?”

His voice was still surprising, but not as much as the question.Had Henry spoken about him?

“...Yes.”

This seemed to reassure the devil greatly.He crawled forward slowly, it took a lot not to back away, but eventually, they were less than a foot apart.

The demon inspected him, like there was a tell he didn’t know about, before suddenly pulling him in for a hug.A gasp escaped him, but he was oddly unafraid by the contact.

“I’m so sorry.”The ink being’s voice was barely audible, but it spoke volumes.It shook him to his very core.Finally releasing him, the devil tried to offer him a smile, but his eyes remained tired and heavy.

He could feel the whispers begin nibbling on the edges of his already frayed mind, he’d been by the exposed ink for far too long now.The other watched him, seemingly unbothered...Who were they, in there?Was there even anyone left?

“I...we must go.”The golden colors started to bleed together, “Upstairs.”

The demon followed his pointed finger, standing and carrying on without question or hesitation.Remembering to grab the hatchet before he caught up behind him, they followed the stairwell to a hallway.

“I....I don’t know where-“ he couldn’t quite think straight yet.He’d been here for so long, yet it was like an entirely different place all of a sudden.

The demon watched him, scared, curious.He seemed more interested in him than in making a plan.

“Where would...where would Henry go?”Surely the demon had some semblance of a clue what to do from here.Why else would the animator have told him to find the little demon?

“Um...” his wide, dark eyes looked up and down the hall.He seemed as lost as the musician.“Up?”

_Up.Up?_

_Up._

He squinted in response.What did that even mean?

“Up _stairs_ ?”Receiving a nod, he rubbed the back of his neck, sighing.

“Do you know how to get there?”

A shake this time was not the answer he had hoped for.There were...many levels in the complex.And if he didn’t know which one they were even aiming for, then he certainly wouldn’t know what Henry had meant by ‘this isn’t goodbye.’

Was there any rhyme or reason to any of this?He couldn’t even remember most of the past however many years, just how long it felt.Like waking up from a thirty year nightmare, and he wasn’t about to go back to sleep now. So, up it would be.

Better than down.

The demon’s eyes were affixed to him, waiting patiently for his word.They were dark, and never ending...his probably weren’t dissimilar.A twinge at the thought.What a strange creature...

“Then we’d better start looking.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. I’m going on a little bit of a hiatus to work on my other fics. I still have a good chunk of story I plan on writing, so I have every intention of coming back to this, but right now, I’m just not feeling up to the task. Thank you so much for your support, comments, and kindness, it means the world to me!!!

**Author's Note:**

> I may edit this in the future, I’m not really used to writing, so I might continuously clean it up as I go! So I’m sorry if it seems a little inconsistent!
> 
> Betterlucknexttimebendy.tumblr.com


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